Eruption of the Pavlof Volcano in Alaska
GOES-15 0.63 µm visible channel images (click image to play animation)
According to the Alaska Volcano Observatory, the Pavlof Volcano began to experience a vigorous eruption around 06:50 UTC on 25 June 2013. As daylight arrived a few hours later, the volcanic plume (which contained some ash) was evident on McIDAS images of 1-km resolution GOES-15 0.63 µm visible channel data (above; click image to play animation). The high-altitude portion of the volcanic plume was estimated to be around 28,000 feet above sea level — this darker-gray plume could be seen drifting northwestward above the lower-altitude clouds over the southern Bering Sea.
During the early morning, a warm thermal anomaly of 42.85º C (darker black enhancement) could be seen at the location of the volcano on a 4-km resolution GOES-15 3.9 µm shortwave IR channel image at 14:45 UTC (below).
GOES-15 3.9 µm shortwave IR channel image
Even with a very large oblique viewing alngle from the Japanese MTSAT-2 satallite, the volcanic cloud and plume rising from the Pavlof Volcano (denoted by the letter “P”) could be seen on a visible channel image at 15:01 UTC (below).
MTSAT-2 visible image