In the Russian Far East Kamchatka Peninsula, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake last week has triggered at least seven volcanic eruptions in the region. The Far East branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Volcanology and Seismology Institute (RAS) stated that this is the first time in nearly 300 years that multiple volcanoes have simultaneously awakened, a rare phenomenon referred to as a “parade of volcanic eruptions”.
According to ABC News, the director of the RAS Institute, Alexey Ozerov, described this event as an “extremely rare phenomenon.”
The earthquake occurred late at night on July 29, with the epicenter located in the eastern waters of the Kamchatka Peninsula, followed by multiple aftershocks, including a 6.0 magnitude aftershock in the Pacific on the morning of August 5. The earthquake caused the southern part of the peninsula to shift southeastward, with some areas moving nearly two meters, comparable to the deformation seen in the 2011 Japan earthquake.
The currently erupting volcanoes include Kamchatka’s highest active volcano, Klyuchevskoy, and the Krasheninnikov volcano, which is experiencing its first lava flow in nearly 600 years. The latter is located less than 150 miles (about 240 kilometers) from the epicenter, with its last recorded eruption dating back to 1463.
Russian seismologists told TASS that volcanic activity is directly related to earthquakes. Ozerov stated, “We believe that the earthquakes injected energy into the magma chamber and triggered the volcanic eruptions.”
According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the Kamchatka Peninsula is home to 29 active volcanoes and is one of the most seismically active regions in the world. In this eruption, three previously dormant volcanoes have also reawakened.
The eruption occurred at 6 a.m. local time on August 3, with a significant amount of volcanic ash and lava ejected, prompting authorities to evacuate personnel. The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry stated that there are currently no residents living around the volcanoes, and no mountaineering groups have been reported near the area.
This earthquake is the most powerful globally since 2011, triggering tsunami warnings from Japan to Hawaii and along the US West Coast in the aftermath.