NASA has released this awesome picture of the Sarychev Volcano, northeast of Japan in the Russian Kuril Islands. Shot from the International Space Station, it captures an early stage of the recent eruption, on 12 June this year.

“This detailed astronaut photograph is exciting to volcanologists because it captures several phenomena that occur during the earliest stages of an explosive volcanic eruption,” says the space agency.

“The eruption cleared a circle in the cloud deck. The clearing may result from the shockwave from the eruption or from sinking air around the eruption plume: as the plume rises, air flows down around the sides like water flowing off the back of a surfacing dolphin.”

Previous Great Beyond coverage of Sarychev

Volcano ash flies high – 15 June, 2009

Volcano update – 17 June, 2009

Image: NASA