The volcanoes of Kamchatka are a large group of

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...

es situated on the

Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and we ...

, in eastern Russia. The

Kamchatka River The Kamchatka (russian: Камча́тка) is the longest river in Kamchatka peninsula, located in Kamchatka Krai in the Russian Far East. It flows into the Pacific Ocean at the town Ust-Kamchatsk, on the east coast of Kamchatka. It is long, ...

and the surrounding central side valley are flanked by large

volcanic belt A volcanic belt is a large volcanically active region. Other terms are used for smaller areas of activity, such as volcanic fields. Volcanic belts are found above zones of unusually high temperature () where magma is created by partial melting ...

s containing around 160

es, 29 of them still active. The peninsula has a high density of volcanoes and associated volcanic phenomena, with 29 active volcanoes being included in the six

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNES ...

sites in the Volcanoes of Kamchatka group, most of them on the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Geography

The highest volcano is

Klyuchevskaya Sopka Klyuchevskaya Sopka (russian: Ключевская сопка; also known as Klyuchevskoi, russian: Ключевской) is a stratovolcano, the highest mountain of Siberia and the highest active volcano of Eurasia. Its steep, symmetrical cone t ...

(4,750 m or 15,584 ft), the largest active volcano in the Northern Hemisphere, while the most striking is Kronotsky, whose perfect cone was said by celebrated

volcanologists Volcanology (also spelled vulcanology) is the study of volcanoes, lava, magma and related geological, geophysical and geochemical phenomena (volcanism). The term ''volcanology'' is derived from the Latin word '' vulcan''. Vulcan was the anci ...

Robert and Barbara Decker to be a prime candidate for the world's most beautiful volcano. Somewhat more accessible are the three volcanoes visible from

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky ( rus, Петропавловск-Камчатский, a=Петропавловск-Камчатский.ogg, p=pʲɪtrɐˈpavləfsk kɐmˈtɕatskʲɪj) is a city and the administrative, industrial, scientific, and cultur ...

Koryaksky Koryaksky or Koryakskaya Sopka (russian: Коря́кская со́пка) is an active volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. It lies within sight of Kamchatka Krai's administrative center, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Togeth ...

Avachinsky Avachinsky (also known as Avacha or Avacha Volcano or Avachinskaya Sopka) (russian: Авачинская сопка, Авача) is an active stratovolcano in Russia. It is situated on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. Avachinsky l ...

, and Kozelsky. In the center of Kamchatka is Eurasia's world-famous

Geyser Valley The Valley of Geysers (russian: Долина гейзеров) is a geyser field on Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, and has the second largest concentration of geysers in the world. This basin with approximately ninety geysers and many hot springs i ...

which was partly destroyed by a massive mudslide in June 2007. Owing to the

Kuril–Kamchatka Trench The Kuril–Kamchatka Trench or Kuril Trench (russian: Курило-Камчатский жёлоб, ''Kurilo-Kamchatskii Zhyolob'') is an oceanic trench in the northwest Pacific Ocean. It lies off the southeast coast of Kamchatka and parallels ...

, deep-focus seismic events and

tsunamis A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater expl ...

are fairly common. A pair of

megathrust earthquake Megathrust earthquakes occur at convergent plate boundaries, where one tectonic plate is forced underneath another. The earthquakes are caused by slip along the thrust fault that forms the contact between the two plates. These interplate earthqua ...

s occurred off the coast on October 16, 1737, and on November 4, 1952, in the magnitude of ~9.3 and 8.2 respectively. A chain of more shallow earthquakes were recorded as recently as April 2006.

List of volcanoes from north to south

Kluchevskaya Klyuchevskaya Sopka (russian: Ключевская сопка; also known as Klyuchevskoi, russian: Ключевской) is a stratovolcano, the highest mountain of Siberia and the highest active volcano of Eurasia. Its steep, symmetrical cone t ...

group **

Shiveluch Shiveluch (russian: Шивелуч), also called Sheveluch, which originates from the name "suelich" which means "smoking mountain" in Itelmen is the northernmost active volcano in Kamchatka Krai, Russia. It and Karymsky are Kamchatka's largest, ...

, 3307 m **

Bezymianny Bezymianny (russian: Безымянный ''Bezymyannyyi'', meaning ''unnamed'') is an active stratovolcano in Kamchatka, Russia. Bezymianny volcano had been considered extinct until 1955. Activity started in 1955, culminating in a dramatic erupt ...

* Kronotsky *Avachinskaya group ** Aag **

Arik Arik is a given name, and may refer to: In sports: *Arik Benado, the captain of Maccabi Haifa *Arik Gilbert (born 2002), American football player * Ariel "Arik" Zeevi, Israeli judoka In music: *Arik Einstein, Israeli singer *Arik Marshall, Ameri ...

**Kozelsky *

Ksudach Ksudach (russian: Ксудач) (also known as Vonyuchy Khrebet Volcano) is a stratovolcano in southern Kamchatka, Russia. The last eruption of Ksudach was in March 1907, on or around 28 March, which was one of the largest ever recorded in Kamch ...

* Ilyinsky *

Kambalny Kambalny (russian: Камбальный) is a stratovolcano located in the southern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. It is the southernmost active volcano of Kamchatka. It has erupted mafic rocks. It has a summit crater as well as five ci ...

* Karymsky Kamchatka's most active and continuously erupting volcano Out of sequence: *

Tolbachik Tolbachik (russian: Толбачик) is a complex volcano, volcanic complex on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the far east of Russia. It consists of two volcanoes, Plosky (''flat'') Tolbachik (3,085 m) and Ostry (''sharp'') Tolbachik (3,682 m), whic ...

* Komarov *

Zhupanovsky Zhupanovsky (russian: Жупановский) is a volcanic massif located in the southeastern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. It consists of four overlapping stratovolcanoes. After 54 years of inactivity, the volcano began erupting on O ...

References

External links

Holocene Volcanoes in Kamchatka, Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Kamchatka, Russia
{{Authority control Volcanoes of Kamchatka Krai Landforms of the Kamchatka Peninsula World Heritage Sites in Russia

Geography

List of volcanoes from north to south

See also

References

External links