Overview

• The 1831 eruption caused global cooling of approximately 1°C, leading to famines and crop failures worldwide.
• Scientists matched microscopic ash particles from ice cores to the Zavaritskii volcano on the Kuril Islands, a disputed territory between Russia and Japan.
• The eruption, which occurred in the spring or summer of 1831, was highly explosive and formed a 3-kilometer-wide caldera on the uninhabited island of Simushir.
• The discovery was made possible through advanced chemical analysis of ash shards, which are smaller than a tenth of a human hair in diameter.
• The findings highlight the need for international coordination to prepare for potential future large-scale volcanic eruptions.