The word "caldera" is of Spanish origin, means copper
It is an original hollow, depression formed on the place of desolate volcano Uzon
with sides - residuary mountainous ranges residuary of crater sides.
Caldera dimensions are large 9x12 km. Total area - 150 sq. km.
Its eastern part is hilly, and western part is waterlogged.
Early in the morning, when air is still fresh, on height of mountains surroundig caldera
in the West and North, which acme is peak Barani, one sees wonderful panorama of
yellow fumarole fields with hunreds vapor trails above them, with green groves, brownish tundras,
bluish lakes.
Kamchatka indigenes called this region "steamy lands".
Down, at every step all over the place astonishing sounds trap you - everything squelches, smacks, whistles, puffs.
It seems that earth power goes up from your underfoot.
Hydrothermal activity is concentrated in the South-West part of caldera, on 5 thermal fields.
It is manifested with many boiling and seething craters, numerous mud coppers/ cauldrons and little volcanoes,
steamy or heated grounds with outlet of steam and hot water.
There are more then 100 springs and more then 500 separate hydrothermal manifestations of nearly all
kinds of water encountered in Kamchatka.
Among caldera lakes you can find the lake Centralnoye which is the largest one. But it is shallow and cold lake.
The lake Fumarolnoye -warm and non-freezing.
The lake Bannoye, where even in winter temperature is 40 C and which bottom is false, is a crust
of molten native sulfur/ brimstone in depth, the lake Utinoye - cold lake with unique sulfur beach.
Earth heat attracts animals and birds.
There are a lot of waterfowls in thermal areas.
Sandpiper, hooping swan, and different species of ducks nest here.
The uniqness of the Uzon volcano caldera consists in an opportunity to see the activity of the
young volcanism, the formation of ore and minerals, the development of thermal lakes,
the coming out of the youngest on the planet oil, and microbiological processes in thermal springs.
The unforgettable view - the Uzon volcano caldera.
It was formed about 40 000 years ago but still arrests attention of both inquisitive tourists and keen scientists.
The first information about the hot springs of the Uzon was published in 1901.
Its author, leader of the expedition, organized by the Russian academy of science,
K.Ditmar travelled around Kamchatka in 1851-1855.
Calderas Uzon made a great impression on him.
Ditmar described thermal fields, paying attention to the big quantity of coming out hot water and steam,
gryphon morphology and the presence of mud coppers and clay small volcanoes.
Ditmar thought Uzon was an active volcano.
More detailed geologocal research of the Uzon was made by volcanologist Piyp in 1933.
He gave the first discription of the Uzon structure geological costruction
and characterized gashydrochemical specialization of hot water
in his book "Thermal springs of Kamchatka"(1937г.).
The expedition of the volcanic institute made an important contribution to study UzonCaldera
and the adjacent areas in 1964-1970.
S.I. Nabokov, V.V. Averjev, V.I. Beloysov, G.I. Bogojavlenskaya, O.A. Brayzeva, G.F. Filipenko,
G.N. Kovalev and other famous scientistc took part in this expedition.
Since 1972 permanent observing station of volcanic Institute has been working in caldera.
Its workers in interaction with observers from Kronotsky biosphere state preserve,
to which this land belongs, make here monitoring research every year.
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