The book provides a systematic description of active volcanoes of Kamchatka — one of the most active volcanic regions of the world. Distribution, shape and activity of the volcanoes, their position in complex and long-lived volcanic centres, as well as their geologic structure and composition are presented.
The book is illustrated with colour maps, schemes, and sketches. Over 300 colour photographs show volcanic landscapes, diverse volcanic forms (cones, craters, lava flows, calderas, etc.) and various manifestations of post-volcanic activity (hydrotherms, famous Kamchatka geysers).
Concise, lavishly illustrated with colourful and high-quality photographs, the book makes an interesting and useful reading not only for specialists (volcanologists, geologists, geochemists, geophysicists, geographes, etc.) but for a bioad readership as well. The publication is unique and unparalleled in scientific literature. The text is presented in Russian and in English.
This monography is written by scientists from the Institute of volcanology, Far East Division, the Academy of Science of the USSR.

The Eastern and Southern zones of Kamchatka arc presented in the second volume. They are characterized by a weaker activity, and their volcanoes arc not as large and powerful as those of the Northern Group. But volcanic manifestations here are more diverse. Half of the volcanoes are connected with collapse calderas. Huge hydrothermal systems are here too. Among them, the famous Valley of Geisers is one of the most picturesque places on Earth.
The book is abounded with colour photographs, maps, schemes, and sketches. They enable the reader to catch uniqueness of these colourful sights and will be of interest not only for specialists in volcanology and geology, but also to a great number of nature lovers.

This paper gives data on the volcanic belts of Kamchatka. Recognition of !hc volcanic zone of the Central Kamchatka Depression as an independent, extensively developing structure is validated. Data available in the literature arc systematized and the quantitative characteristics are recalculated for all the active volcanoes of Kamchatka: the total volume of volcanic rocks, relative heights, absolute and relative volumes of rocks of basic, intermediate and acid composition, mean production rate of edifices, duration of formation (in thousands of years) etc. Their calculated mean statistical values for a Kamchatkan volcano for the entire region and for separate groups of edifice types have been obtained for the first time. This study shows that the basic volcanism plays the leading part in the formation of volcanic edifices.

Three stages of study of active and potentially active volcanoes on Kamchatka and the Kurile Islands were distinguished: the anterior stage (1700-1935), the new stage (1935-1962) and the recent stage (from 1962 till present time).
This paper provides a new, for the first time scientifically based term of «active volcano». Updated catalogues display active and potentially active volcanoes of Kamchatka and the Kurile Islands. Here we propose a long-term forecast of behavior and parameters of impending eruptions and related volcanic hazards for the typical volcanoes of the 1st and the 2nd stages of evolution.