Report on Ebeko (Russia) — December 1987
Scientific Event Alert Network Bulletin, vol. 12, no. 12 (December 1987)
Managing Editor: Lindsay McClelland.
Ebeko (Russia) Explosions continue; minor ashfall
Please cite this report as:
Global Volcanism Program, 1987. Report on Ebeko (Russia) (McClelland, L., ed.). Scientific Event Alert Network Bulletin, 12:12. Smithsonian Institution. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.SEAN198712-290380
Ebeko
Russia
50.686°N, 156.014°E; summit elev. 1103 m
All times are local (unless otherwise noted)
Explosive eruptions began on 14 October, from two of the three vents in the N summit crater. A gas cloud continuously rose 150-250 m while periodic explosions sent ash plumes to heights between 300-400 m and 1,000-1,200 m (table 1). Similar activity continued 14-20 November. A meteorological station in Severo-Kurilsk (6 km S) recorded the explosions.
Table 1. Large explosions from Ebeko, 27 October-8 November 1987.
| Date | Time | Observations |
| 27 Oct 1987 | 1500 | -- |
| 28 Oct 1987 | 0915 | -- |
| 29 Oct 1987 | 0338 | -- |
| 31 Oct 1987 | 0119 | Accompanied by a bright flash. |
| 04 Nov 1987 | 1640 | -- |
| 05 Nov 1987 | 2100 | Minor ashfall and sulfur smell reported in Severo-Kurilsk. |
| 07 Nov 1987 | 1650 | Sulfur smell reported in Severo-Kurilsk. |
| 08 Nov 1987 | 1105 | -- |
No seismic precursors to the eruption were recorded and the seismic station of the Inst of Marine Geology & Geophysics, in Severo-Kurilsk, did not detect any earthquakes in the region during the eruption. The same station recorded earthquakes before and during the more distant (but much larger) 1981 eruption of Alaid (40 km NW). Specialists from the IV, Petropavlovsk, are working at the volcano. Air observations were made by the Inst of Marine Geology & Geophysics.
Further Reference. Menyailov, I.A., Ovsyannokov, A.A., and Shirokov, V.A., 1990, Eruption of Ebeko volcano in October-December 1987: Volc. Seis. (in English), v. 10, p. 493-498.
Geological Summary. The flat-topped summit of the central cone of Ebeko volcano, one of the most active in the Kuril Islands, occupies the northern end of Paramushir Island. Three summit craters located along a SSW-NNE line form Ebeko volcano proper, at the northern end of a complex of five volcanic cones. Blocky lava flows extend west from Ebeko and SE from the neighboring Nezametnyi cone. The eastern part of the southern crater contains strong solfataras and a large boiling spring. The central crater is filled by a lake about 20 m deep whose shores are lined with steaming solfataras; the northern crater lies across a narrow, low barrier from the central crater and contains a small, cold crescentic lake. Historical activity, recorded since the late-18th century, has been restricted to small-to-moderate explosive eruptions from the summit craters. Intense fumarolic activity occurs in the summit craters, on the outer flanks of the cone, and in lateral explosion craters.
Information Contacts: G. Steinberg, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk; S. Fedotov, IV.
