Active volcano in Russia: Eruption blankets village in ash

One of Russia's most active volcanoes has erupted, coating a village in ash and triggering an aviation alert.

On the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka, two eruptions have occurred in recent days. First, the volcanic eruption of Besymjanny in early April, which sent a column of ash 10 km high into the atmosphere. A camera caught it in action above.

Adjacent to Besymjanny, the Shiveluch volcano, one of the largest in the Peninsula, then erupted during the early hours of Tuesday 11th April, with ash reportedly reaching heights over 20 km.

The ash smothered villages in the deepest dust in 60 years, with up to 8.5 cm settling in the village of Klyuchi within four hours. The village is the closest inhabited area, located 47 km south-west of the volcano.

In both cases, most residents and tourists were not impacted due to being in a scarcely populated area. However Volcanologists have said the ash plume could extend as far as Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the regional capital, over 400 km away.

The highest danger level, red, has also been declared for aviation due to the large amount of ash. The flight route from North America to Japan for example, passes the Kamchatka Peninsula.

The Kamchatka Peninsula has one of the highest concentrations of geothermal activity in the world. According to NASA, it has over 300 volcanoes, though approximately 30 are active.