Spectacular Sarychev

  • Released Thursday, January 30, 2014

On June 12, 2009, a fortuitous orbit of the International Space Station (ISS) made it possible for an astronaut on board to capture Sarychev Volcano in the early stages of eruption. The volcano is located on the northwestern end of Matua Island, which is part of the Kuril Islands, a chain of 56 islands northeast of Japan. The eruption sent a plume of brown-colored ash and white steam rising into the atmosphere. The plume was so immense that it cast a large shadow on the island. Sarychev is one of the most active volcanoes in the Kuril Island chain. Prior to June 12, the last explosive eruption occurred in 1989, with eruptions in 1986, 1976, 1954, and 1946 also producing lava flows. Watch the video to see how the eruption looked from space.

A cloud of denser, gray ash&ampmdash;probably a pyroclastic flow&ampmdash;appears to be hugging the ground, descending from the volcano summit.

A cloud of denser, gray ash—probably a pyroclastic flow—appears to be hugging the ground, descending from the volcano summit.

The ISS flyby provided astronauts with views of the eruption from more than one perspective.

The ISS flyby provided astronauts with views of the eruption from more than one perspective.

Sarychev reaches a height of 4,908 feet, forming the highest point on Matua Island.

Sarychev reaches a height of 4,908 feet, forming the highest point on Matua Island.

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Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Earth Observatory
Sarychev volcano images courtesy of NASA/JSC/Image Science and Analysis Laboratory
Matua Island image courtesy of NASA Earth Observatory/Jesse Allen

Release date

This page was originally published on Thursday, January 30, 2014.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:51 PM EDT.