Avachinsky Volcano

Updated: May 21, 2025 04:11 GMT - refresh

Stratovolcano

Kamchatka (Russia), 53.26°N / 158.83°E

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Summit height: 2741 m (8,993 ft)

Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5)

Last update: 27 Aug 2024 (increased steaming, hot gas emissions)

The summit cone of Avachinsky volcano seen from the outer western caldera slope in August 2024 (image: Marina Morozova)

Avachinsky towering above Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka's largest city, is one of Kamchatka's most active volcanoes. It typically erupts every few years to decades, often producing ash flows and lahars.

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Typical eruption style: Explosive
Avachinsky volcano eruptions: 1737 (produced tsunami), 1772, 1779, 1789, 1827, 1828, 1837, 1851, 1853, 1854, 1855, 1878, 1881, 1894-95, 1901, 1909, 1926-27, 1938, 1945, 1991, 2001, 2008 (ongoing)

Latest nearby earthquakes

Date and Time	Mag / Depth	Distance / Location
May 21, 02:15 am (Kamchatka)	0.1 1.2 km	10.9 km (6.7 mi) to the NW	29 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
May 20, 10:19 pm (Kamchatka)	0.1 1.8 km	0.6 km (0.4 mi) to the W	25 km northeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
Friday, May 16, 2025 GMT (1 quake)
May 17, 05:34 am (Kamchatka)	1.7 1 km	1.4 km (0.9 mi) to the N	Yelizovskiy Rayon, 26 km northeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
Thursday, May 15, 2025 GMT (1 quake)
May 15, 10:51 pm (Kamchatka)	1.0 7.7 km	24 km (15 mi) to the N	44 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
Wednesday, May 14, 2025 GMT (2 quakes)
May 15, 07:06 am (Kamchatka)	1.0 1.4 km	17 km (10.3 mi) to the NW	Yelizovskiy Rayon, 36 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
May 15, 07:02 am (Kamchatka)	0.5 2.5 km	17 km (10.5 mi) to the NW	Yelizovskiy Rayon, 36 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
Tuesday, May 13, 2025 GMT (1 quake)
May 13, 09:20 pm (Kamchatka)	0.1 1.6 km	10.9 km (6.8 mi) to the NW	Yelizovskiy Rayon, 29 km north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info
Monday, May 12, 2025 GMT (1 quake)
May 13, 05:17 am (Kamchatka)	4.5 84 km	26 km (16 mi) to the E	41 km east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia 12 reports	Info
Saturday, May 10, 2025 GMT (1 quake)
May 11, 12:23 am (Kamchatka)	2.2 120 km	19 km (12 mi) to the E	Yelizovskiy Rayon, 37 km northeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia	Info

View recent quakes

Background

Avachinsky began to form during the middle or late Pleistocene and is flanked to the SE by the parasitic volcano Kozelsky, which has a large crater breached to the NE. Avachinsky has a large horseshoe-shaped caldera, breached to the SW, that was formed when a major debris avalanche about 30,000-40,000 years ago buried an area of about 500 sq km to the south underlying the city of Petropavlovsk. Reconstruction of the volcano took place in two stages, the first of which began about 18,000 years before present (BP), and the second 7000 years BP. Most eruptive products have been explosive, with pyroclastic flows and hot lahars being directed primarily to the SW by the breached caldera, although relatively short lava flows have been emitted. The frequent historical eruptions of Avachinsky have been similar in style and magnitude to previous Holocene eruptions.
Source: Global Volcanism Program

Avachinsky Volcano Photos

South side of Vilyuchinsky volcano(2173 m), Kamchatka, on the right. The volcanoes Aag (2310 m, left), Koryaksky (3456 m, center) and Avachinsky (2741 m, right) rise abov...

Avachinsky volcano towering above Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka (Photo: Richard Roscoe)

Koryaksky's neighbor volcano, Avachinsky follows a few moments later to the left. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

The views become better and better: Vilyuchik volcano and Koryaksky and Avachinsky volcanoes in the background. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

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Significant volcanic eruptions: Avachinsky volcano

In the past 10,000 years, Avachinsky has had at least 55 confirmed volcanic eruptions, out of which 19 are documented by historical records, while the others can be inferred from geological evidence.
Additionally, there are 3 uncertain or discredited eruptions from Avachinsky volcano.

The table below lists all known eruptions (date in bold face) of Avachinsky volcano since around 1700. Updates on the most recent volcanic activity of Avachinsky can be found on the news page of Avachinsky volcano.

Date	Note	VEI
2001 Oct 5	Historical obs./docs.	1
1991 Jan 13 - Jan 30	Historical obs./docs.	2
1945 Feb 25	Historical obs./docs.	4
1938 Mar 6 - Dec 1 or later	Historical obs./docs.	3
1926 Mar 27 - 1927 Mar 14 ?	Historical obs./docs.	4
?? 1910	Uncertain Eruption	?
1909 Aug	Historical obs./docs.	2
1901 Jul 7 - Jul 13	Historical obs./docs.	2
1894 Oct - 1895 Feb	Historical obs./docs.	2
1881	Historical obs./docs.	2
1878	Historical obs./docs.	2
1855 May 28 - Sep 4 ±4 d.	Historical obs./docs.	2
1854 Aug 13	Historical obs./docs.	2
1853 Dec 21 - 1854 Mar 14	Historical obs./docs.	2
1851 Nov 26 - 1852 Feb 14 ±4 d.	Historical obs./docs.	2
?? 1837	Uncertain Eruption	?
1828 Apr 17	Historical obs./docs.	2
1827 Aug 9 (eruption 1827 Jun 27 - Jun 29)	Historical obs./docs.	2	Info
1827 Aug 9: See notes for June 17, 1827. Cited references #95 Acharya, Hemendra (1989): Estimation of tsunami hazard from volcanic activity--suggested methodology with Augustine Volcano, Alaska as an example. Natural Hazards, vol. 1, no. 4, p. 341-348. DOI:10.1007/BF00134832 #2024 Zayakin, Yu. A., and A. A. Luchinina (1990): Catalog of Tsunamis in Kamchatka, World Data Center of the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Hydrometeorology, Obninsk, 1987, Translated by Amerind Publishing Co., Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India, 74 p. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Earthquake Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K
1827 Jun 27 - Jun 29	Historical obs./docs.	4
1827 Jun 27 (eruption 1827 Jun 27 - Jun 29)	Tsunami recorded Historical obs./docs.	2	Info
1827 Jun 27: One of the strongest eruptions of Avachinsky Volcano took place in 1827. It was accompanied by unusually strong shocks and tsunami in Avacha Bay. The date of this eruption, earthquake and tsunami is uncertain. Soloviev (1961) lists the event as July 27-29, 1827. Melekestsev (1994) and Simkin (1994) list event as June 27-29. Zayakin (1987) lists an event on August 9-10, 1827. It is likely that these are all the same event. Cited references #79 Iida, Kumizi, Doak C. Cox, and George Pararas-Carayannis (1967): Preliminary Catalog of Tsunamis Occurring in the Pacific Ocean, HIG-67-10, Hawaii Institute of Geophysics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, 275 p. Bibliography to the Preliminary Catalog of Tsunamis Occurring in the Pacific Ocean, December 1967, 27 p. #413 Soloviev, S.L., and M.D. Ferchev (1961): Summary of Data on Tsunamis in the USSR. Bulletin of the Council for Seismology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR [Byulleten Soveta po Seismologii Akademiya Nauk, SSSR], no. 9, 23-55, Moscow, USSR, 37 p. #1412 Simkin, Tom, and Lee Siebert with the collaboration of Russell Blong, Jonathan Dehn, Christopher Newhall, Roland Pool, and Thomas C. Stein (1994): Volcanoes of the World, Second Edition, A Regional Directory, Gazetteer, and Chronology of Volcanism During the Last 10,000 Years, Geoscience Press, Inc., Tucson, Arizona, in association with Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program, Washington, D.C., p. 164-176. #2024 Zayakin, Yu. A., and A. A. Luchinina (1990): Catalog of Tsunamis in Kamchatka, World Data Center of the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Hydrometeorology, Obninsk, 1987, Translated by Amerind Publishing Co., Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India, 74 p. #2064 Melekestev, I.V., O.A. Braitseva, V.N. Dvigalo, L.I. Bazanova (1994): Historical Eruptions of Avacha Volcano, Kamchatka. Attempt of Modern Interpretation and Classification for Long-Term Prediction of the Types and Parameters of Future Eruptions. Part I. (1737-1909) Volcan. Seis. 14, p. 646-666. Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Earthquake Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K
?? 1789	Uncertain Eruption	?
1779 Jun 15 - Jun 16	Historical obs./docs.	3
1772	Historical obs./docs.	2
1737 Aug	Historical obs./docs.	3

Remark:

Our list of volcanic eruptions closely follows the database of eruptions of the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Project (GVP), the internationally most recognized data source for volcanic eruptions, but also includes significant eruptive episodes or related volcano events. "Volcanic eruptions" are usually to be understood as sequences of individual eruptive episodes that can follow each other, or even overlap (if several vents are involved), and can last many years, decades or even longer. For example, the current activity of Stromboli volcano is understood as a single eruption that has been ongoing since 1934.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Volcanic Eruptions Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K | Global Volcanism Project / Smithsonian Institution

Avachinsky Volcano FAQ

+When was the last eruption of Avachinsky volcano?

The last confirmed eruption of Avachinsky occurred in 2001.

+How often does Avachinsky volcano erupt?

Since 1737, Avachinsky volcano has had at least 19 historically documented eruptions. This means that it erupts on average every 15.2 years.

+How active is Avachinsky volcano at present?

Avachinsky volcano is infrequently active: Since 1900, it has had 8 eruptions, and been active during 8 years out of 126 as of now. This means, Avachinsky has been in eruption one in 15.8 years on average. The last eruption was in 2001 and ended 24 years ago.

+When was the largest eruption of Avachinsky volcano?

The largest eruption known from the younger geological history of Avachinsky volcano occurred in 1350 BC. It ranks as a sub-plinian eruption with a magnitude 4 on the VEI (Volcanic Explosivity Index) scale.

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Avachinsky Volcano Tours

Kamchatka (Russia)

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Avachinsky Volcano Maps

Below is a selection of maps showing the location and surroundings of the volcano at various resolutions based on aerial-imagery / terrain maps. Feel free to use them for non-commercial purposes on your blog or website as long as you credit them with a link back to this page (click to copy it).