Earth Observations taken by Expedition 38 crewmember

ISS038-E-005515 (16 Nov. 2013) --- Activity at Kliuchevskoi Volcano on Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Federation is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 38 crew member on the International Space Station. When viewing conditions are favorable, crew members onboard the space station can take unusual and striking images of Earth. This photograph provides a view of an eruption plume emanating from Kliuchevskoi Volcano, one of the many active volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula. Nadir views – looking “straight down”—that are typical of orbital satellite imagery tend to flatten the appearance of the landscape by reducing the sense of three dimensions of the topography. In contrast, this image was taken from the ISS with a very oblique viewing angle that gives a strong sense of three dimensions, which is accentuated by the shadows cast by the volcanic peaks. This resulted in a view similar to what a person might see from a low-altitude airplane. The image was taken when the space station was located over a ground position more than 1,500 kilometers to the southwest. The plume – likely a combination of steam, volcanic gases, and ash – is extended to the east-southeast by prevailing winds; the dark region to the north-northwest of the plume is likely a product of both shadow and ash settling out. Several other volcanoes are visible in the image, including Ushkovsky, Tolbachik, Zimina, and Udina. To the south-southwest of Kliuchevskoi lies Bezymianny Volcano which appears to be emitting a small steam plume (visible at center).