KVERT reported that strong gas-and-steam emissions from Chikurachki were first visible at 1200 on 31 January and likely contained ash. The plume had drifted 80 km SW at altitudes of 4.5-5 km (14,800-16,400) a.s.l. by 1418. KVERT raised the Aviation Color Code to Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale). Activity continued through the next day; a satellite image acquired at 0319 on 1 February showed ash plumes rising as high as 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifting 104 km WSW.

Geological Summary. Chikurachki, the highest volcano on Paramushir Island in the northern Kuriles, is a relatively small cone constructed on a high Pleistocene edifice. Oxidized basaltic-to-andesitic scoria deposits covering the upper part of the young cone give it a distinctive red color. Frequent basaltic Plinian eruptions have occurred during the Holocene. Lava flows have reached the sea and formed capes on the NW coast; several young lava flows are also present on the E flank beneath a scoria deposit. The Tatarinov group of six volcanic centers is located immediately to the south, and the Lomonosov cinder cone group, the source of an early Holocene lava flow that reached the saddle between it and Fuss Peak to the west, lies at the southern end of the N-S-trending Chikurachki-Tatarinov complex. In contrast to the frequently active Chikurachki, the Tatarinov centers are extensively modified by erosion and have a more complex structure. Tephrochronology gives evidence of an eruption around 1690 CE from Tatarinov, although its southern cone contains a sulfur-encrusted crater with fumaroles that were active along the margin of a crater lake until 1959.

Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)