page_title: Raikoke
section_title: 2019 eruption
hierarchical_section_title: Raikoke / Geology / 2019 eruption
caption_attribution_description: Unlike some of its perpetually active neighbors on the Kamchatka Peninsula, Raikoke Volcano on the Kuril Islands rarely erupts. The small, oval-shaped island most recently exploded in 1778 and 1924. The dormant period ended around 4:00 a.m. local time on June 22, 2019, when a vast plume of ash and volcanic gases shot up from its 700-meter-wide crater. Several satellites — as well as astronauts on the International Space Station — observed as a thick plume rose and then streamed east as it was pulled into the circulation of a storm in the North Pacific. On the morning of June 22, astronauts shot a photograph of the volcanic plume rising in a narrow column and then spreading out in a part of the plume known as the umbrella region. That is the area where the density of the plume and the surrounding air equalize and the plume stops rising. The ring of clouds at the base of the column appears to be water vapor. Learn more: &lt;a href="https://go.nasa.gov/2LhdrLn" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;go.nasa.gov/2LhdrLn&lt;/a&gt; Credit: NASA (&lt;a href="https://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/SearchPhotos/photo.pl?mission=ISS059&amp;roll=E&amp;frame=119250" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;eol.jsc.nasa.gov/SearchPhotos/photo.pl?mission=ISS059&amp;amp...&lt;/a&gt;) &lt;a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;NASA image use policy.&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;NASA Goddard Space Flight Center&lt;/a&gt; enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;Twitter&lt;/a&gt; Like us on &lt;a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt; Find us on &lt;a href="http://www.instagram.com/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="noreferrer nofollow"&gt;Instagram&lt;/a&gt;
context_page_description: Raikoke, also spelled Raykoke, is, as of 2019 an uninhabited volcanic island near the centre of the Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean, 16 kilometres distant from the island of Matua. Its name is derived from the Ainu language, from “hellmouth”.
context_section_description: At approximately 4 am, 22 June 2019 it erupted, with a plume of ash and gas reaching between 13,000 m (43,000 ft) and 17,000 m (56,000 ft), passing the tropopause and allowing stratospheric injection of ash and sulfur dioxide.
caption: Raikoke emits a plume of ash and volcanic gases in the 2019 eruption
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