Volcanic Ash Creates ‘Alien’ Landscape at Nature Preserve in Kamchatka

A recent volcanic eruption in Far East Russia has blanketed the remote landscape of a major nature preserve with ash, the Kamchatka peninsula’s park service said Friday. 

Bezymyanny volcano, one of Kamchatka’s most active, erupted on Wednesday, with ash spewing up to 12 kilometers into the Earth’s atmosphere and plumes extending around 2,500 kilometers southeast of the volcano. 

Kamchatka’s Volcanic Eruption Response Team said a giant ash cloud stretching 360 kilometers in length and 125 kilometers in width remained over the peninsula days after the eruption.

“After the explosive eruption, an effusive eruption of the volcano began… which [was] accompanied by hot avalanches and powerful gas-steam activity,” the team said in an advisory notice.

The park service shared photographs and a video of the aftermath, saying that “a thick layer of gray ash covered the entire territory” of the Kleshnya cordon in Klyuchevsky Park, “creating a truly alien picture.”

“This was a serious test for the local flora and fauna, which are forced to adapt to new conditions,” it added.

The park service warned visitors and residents to avoid visiting the eruption site until “the situation stabilizes” as authorities continue to monitor volcanic activity.

The Volcanic Eruption Response Team, meanwhile, said international and local airlines faced a “moderate” potential hazard due to the volcanic ash.

Bezymyanni was considered extinct until it erupted in 1956, and the latest eruption is part of a series that began in 2017.