KVERT reported that the eruption at Chirinkotan continued during 11-17 August. An explosion at 1315 on 14 August produced a 15 x 17 km ash plume that rose 3-3.5 km (10,000-11,500 ft) a.s.l. and drifted 13 km SSE. Ash plumes from an explosion at 0945 on 15 August rose 2.5-3 km (8,200-10,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted 8 km S. KVERT and SVERT noted that another explosive event at 1010 on 16 August generated ash plumes that rose 3.5-5 km (11,500-16,400 ft) a.s.l. and drifted 23 km E. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).

Geological Summary. The small, mostly unvegetated 3-km-wide island of Chirinkotan occupies the far end of an E-W volcanic chain that extends nearly 50 km W of the central part of the main Kuril Islands arc. It is the emergent summit of a volcano that rises 3000 m from the floor of the Kuril Basin. A small 1-km-wide caldera about 300-400 m deep is open to the SW. Lava flows from a cone within the breached crater reached the shore of the island. Historical eruptions have been recorded since the 18th century. Lava flows were observed by the English fur trader Captain Snow in the 1880s.

Sources: Sakhalin Volcanic Eruption Response Team (SVERT), Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)