English: A strong eruption from the Shiveluch volcano shook the Kamchatka Peninsula on December 4, 2017, when an explosion and/or partial collapse at the active lava dome produced an eruption column that rose to about 33,000 feet (10 km) altitude. According to Volcano Discovery, some small pyroclastic flows were generated that traveled approximately 1-2 km (0.6 – 1.2 mi) down the southwestern sector, followed by secondary mudflows (caused by melt-water) that stretched about 3 km (1.9 mi).

The following day, on December 5, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite flew over Far Eastern Russia and acquired a true-color image of still-erupting Shiveluch. A broad plume of gray volcanic ash rises from the volcano and blows to the southeast over the North Pacific Ocean. Additionally, it appears that volcanic ash remains suspended in the atmosphere to the northeast of the volcanic peak.

Shiveluch is one of the most active volcanoes in the region, and has been in constant eruption since 1999, with relative quiet interspersed with frequent, often explosive, activity. The December 4 eruption followed a long period of relative calm, with decreasing activity over the past months.