(ORDO NEWS) — Research carried out by scientists suggests that the central part of the Kamchatka Peninsula has been the bottom of a giant lake for more than 20 thousand years, Director of the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IVS FEB RAS) Alexei Ozerov told RAI “KAMCHATKA-INFORM”.
“A group of scientists led by a leading researcher of the IVS FEB RAS, Doctor of Geographical Sciences Vera Ponomareva in 2021 reconstructed the continuous chronicle of volcanic eruptions in Kamchatka during the late Pleistocene – 12-30 thousand years ago.
For the first time, investigations made it possible to assume a long – more than 20 thousand years – existence of a huge lake dammed by glaciers in the central part of Kamchatka. The area of the lake, according to the most conservative estimates, exceeded 10 thousand square kilometers, ”said Alexey Ozerov.
According to him, specialists from the IVS FEB RAS, Lakehead University (Canada) took part in large-scale research; Center GEOMARA (Germany), GIN RAS; GEOCHI RAS; POI FEB RAS.
“Research results show that the strongest explosive eruptions in the Pleistocene occurred 30-25 thousand years ago, while the melting of the glaciers of the last ice maximum caused only moderate eruptions.
The largest explosive eruption of this time, which occurred about 28 thousand years ago, was associated with the eruptive center of Gorely volcano. Particles of magmatic material from this eruption were found from the central part of Kamchatka to Chukotka, “added the director of the IVS FEB RAS.
Volcano Gorely is still an active one. It is located in the south of Kamchatka, 70 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. The modern edifice of the volcano occupies the central part of the caldera and is represented by three merged cones, which are elongated in the form of a ridge in the west-northwest direction.
At the top of the structure there are 11 superimposed craters, on its slopes there are about 40 side breakthroughs with lava flows. The last eruption of Gorely took place in 2010-2014.
The Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences is the only specialized institution in the world for the study of volcanic activity and seismicity. It was formed on September 7, 1962 by a decree of the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
The decision to establish a specialized scientific institution in Kamchatka was made in connection with the unique position of the peninsula in the Pacific Ring of Fire of the Earth. No other region of the world has such a variety of volcanic activity (almost all volcanoes in Kamchatka are characterized by different types of eruptions) and at the same time such a high seismic activity.
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