PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY — Eurasia's highest volcano, Klyuchevskoi, on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's Far East, began erupting, Russia's Skanex research and development center said in a statement Tuesday.
According to the statement, powerful explosions were registered in the upper part of the volcanic neck. The volcano spews ash some 200-300 meters (650-985 feet) high in the air, while gas and vapor emissions occur within an interval of three to five minutes.
Apart from powerful mud flows that could form from ice thawing on the volcano's sides, the current eruption of Klyuchevskoi does not pose a threat to locals. Experts, however, say that the eruption could pose a threat to tourists visiting the volcano and local air traffic.
Last time the volcano erupted was in 2010, but its most powerful eruption in the recent years was registered between January and May of 2005. Following that eruption, the volcano "sank" by 50 meters (about 165 feet), from 4,800 meters (about 16,000 feet) to the current 4,750 meters (15,845 feet).
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