An active volcano blazes in the Russian Far East in this orbital view by a NASA satellite.

NASA’s Earth-watching spacecraft Terra used its ASTER instrument to scan the Karymsky volcano, one of many active volcanoes on the Kamchatka peninsula in Russian Siberia.

ASTER, shot for Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emissoin and Reflection Radiometer, imaged Karymsky during a Dec. 19, 2006 overflight.

The hottest spot can be found at the volcano’s summit, and appears in red and yellow hues that point to a possible pyroclastic flow.

An ash track can be seen as the triangular dark area that covers the countryside to the east of Karymsky’s summit. The short white streak visible emanating from the summit is likely a cloud of water vapor.

-- SPACE.com Staff

Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.