Kamchatka’s ever-restless Klyuchevskaya volcano has erupted again. This time, the 4,754m snow-capped giant sent a plume of ash 12 kilometers high. The ash column also extended 1,600 kilometers away, interfering with overseas flights.
Klyuchevskaya is one of the Siberian peninsula’s 300 volcanoes and is almost perennially active. It has erupted over 100 times in the modern era, most recently in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2019, 2022, and earlier in 2023.
During its few quiet periods, mountaineers have set out to climb it since its first ascent by Britain’s Daniel Gauss and two partners in 1788. Last year, a party of nine Russian climbers died on its slopes, from a fall and exposure.
