Smoke around the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia
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Credit
Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC
On the Kamchatka Peninsula off the northeastern coast of Russia, volcanic activity is a regular occurrence. Kamchatka is home to numerous active volcanoes, and two of them are currently exhibiting thermal anomalies, which were detected by MODIS on May 14, 2002. The northernmost red box marks the location of the volcano called Sheveluch. It has been restless for several weeks, occasionally emitting clouds of ash, smoke and gases, and in this image a cloud of smoke can be seen hovering around the volcano. The easternmost of the two central red dots is the Karymsky volcano, which has also been showing signs of restlessness since late April, occasionally emitting ash and steam. The other red dots in this image are agricultural fires, used to clear land in preparation for planting.