Geosphere Journal Entry
Geosphere Journal Entry
Kamchatka Volcanoes Keep Active (April 12, 2010)
Satellite view of ash rising from four volcanoes on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. NASA.
A NASA satellite caught a glimpse of four volcanoes on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula erupting at the same time. Each of the volcanoes was spewing thick clouds of dark ash high into the atmosphere. Engine-clogging ash is a threat to planes flying over the region and a breathing problem for people living on the lightly-populated, snow-covered peninsula.
Kamchatka Peninsula, known as the Land of Volcanoes and Geysers, is the site of much geothermal activity. The peninsula sits at the edge of the North American plate where the Pacific plate dives under it. Crust from the subducting plate melts deep below the surface to form magma. Eventually, the magma rises to the surface through its many volcanoes. These are included in the Ring of Fire, the huge arc of volcanoes along plate boundaries surrounding the Pacific Ocean.
The peninsula has more than 100 volcanoes that have erupted over the past 12,000 years. Nineteen of these are currently active.
