Eurasia’s tallest volcano rises after Kamchatka quakes and lava flows

Klyuchevskaya Sopka, the highest active volcano in Eurasia, has grown taller following a series of eruptions this year, according to the Telegram channel Amur Mash.

The explosive activity at Klyuchevskaya began on April 20, 2025. By July 29, the crater formed after a paroxysmal eruption on October 31–November 1, 2023, had gradually filled with lava. Volcanic explosions resumed, sending ash plumes up to 8 kilometres above sea level.

On July 30, lava flows descended the western slope of the volcano, coinciding with a powerful earthquake in Kamchatka—the strongest since 1952—with a magnitude of 8.7 and an epicentre 360 kilometres northeast of Severo-Kurilsk at a depth of 17 kilometres. Tremors were felt intensely in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (7–8 on the Richter scale) and moderately in the Sakhalin region (5–6).

The quake caused a tsunami affecting local and regional areas and shifted the Earth’s surface southeast by nearly two meters, especially in southern Kamchatka.

Almost two weeks later, Klyuchevskaya began its second eruption of 2025, sending a 10-kilometre-high ash column into the air. By August 3, the nearby Krasheninnikov volcano erupted for the first time in 600 years, a phenomenon visible from space. On August 7, ash from Klyuchevskaya Sopka reached 12 kilometres in height, while lava flows created rivers of molten rock streaming down its slopes.

Although the main eruption has ended, small emissions remain possible as magma settles. Amur Mash notes that a slag cone has appeared in the crater, visible from surrounding villages. It is not yet clear how much the volcano has grown; previous measurements placed its height between 4,688 and 4,750 meters.

The eruption coincides with international events in Alaska: Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump are scheduled to meet on August 15 at a military base in Anchorage. Authorities have announced closures of the skies over Alaska’s largest city during the summit due to the “movement of VIPs.”

By Tamilla Hasanova