NISAR Satellite Imaged Krasheninnikov Volcano Eruption
Researchers compiled 17 radar frames to visualize volcanic activity triggered by a major 2025 earthquake.
Updated on Sept. 24, 2026 in Geology
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In August 2026, researchers released a time-lapse visualization of Russia's Krasheninnikov volcano, which began erupting in August 2025. The imagery was captured by the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite following a massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake on July 30, 2025.
Why it matters
This visualization demonstrates the capability of high-resolution orbital radar to track geologic changes in remote regions. The 2025 earthquake is believed to have triggered the first eruption of the Krasheninnikov volcano since 1550.
The NISAR satellite operates from a 464-mile (747-kilometer) orbit and utilizes a 39-foot (12-meter) radar antenna reflector. The system employs both L-band and S-band radar to achieve a pixel resolution of 10-meter-by-10-meter across the Earth's surface.
The players
NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR)
A joint Earth-observing satellite mission between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation designed to map surface changes with radar.
Alaska Satellite Facility
A research center that serves as a primary repository and distribution site for NASA's synthetic aperture radar data.
The details
The satellite uses synthetic aperture radar, a technique that sends thousands of microwave pulses to the ground to map terrain. By combining multiple radar images of the same area taken during return orbits every 12 days, SAR processing sharpens the final output into a coherent time-lapse. This method allows researchers to observe surface deformation even in obscured or remote locations like the Kamchatka Peninsula.
Timeline
1550: The year of the last recorded eruption of the Krasheninnikov volcano.
July 30, 2025: An 8.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in the ocean near the volcano.
August 2025: The Krasheninnikov volcano began its eruption.
December 25, 2025: The NISAR satellite captured an image of the volcanic site.
Mid-August 2026: Researchers compiled 17 radar frames into the final time-lapse.
The Tech Race
This effort represents a practical application of the NASA NISAR mission, which seeks to provide higher-resolution change detection than legacy orbital systems. It demonstrates the growing reliance on multi-band radar constellations to monitor the Earth's 1,300 active above-sea-level volcanoes.
Researchers and geological institutions can access these radar data sets directly through the Alaska Satellite Facility to conduct their own monitoring of volcanic precursors. The workflow requires specialized software capable of processing raw synthetic aperture radar pulses into interpretable maps.
The takeaway
The NISAR platform establishes a new baseline for measuring surface deformation in remote regions through 12-day orbital return cycles. Future monitoring will rely on these radar frames to provide early indicators of volcanic reawakening following major seismic events.
Further reading
For more on the use of orbital radar for surface monitoring, visit the Geology section.
More information
View the technical specifications of the satellite and mission objectives on the NASA NISAR mission information page.
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