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Located in southern Kamchatka in Siberia, Mutnovsky is actuallymade up of two juxtaposed volcanoes. It rises to a height of 7,622feet (2,324 m) and has two crater lakes at its summit. In the past150 years this volcanic pair has experienced fifteen eruptions,the most recent of which occurred in 1961. Today its activity islimited to the emission of sulfurous gases or wisps of smoke at1100° F (600° C). Created less than 1 million years ago,Kamchatka Peninsula is geologically quite young. It is located ona subduction zone, where the Pacific tectonic plate submergesunder the Eurasia plate. The peninsula has 160 volcanoes, of which30 are active, which were declared a world heritage site by UNESCOin 1996. An estimated 1,400 volcanoes in the world are capable oferupting at any time; 60 percent of them are located on the rim ofthe Pacific Ocean, called the “fire belt.”
At the eastern tip of Siberia, Kamchatka Peninsula spreads over nearly 145,000 square miles (370,000 km2). This region of Russia is ruled by nature, and humankind is barely present (the population density is below 1 person per km2). The peninsula is geologically very young (less than 1 million years) and has 160 volcanoes, including thirty that remain active; they were declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1996. Kronotskaya Volcano is one of the highest, at 11,570 feet (3,528 m). The 3,500 square miles (9,000 km2) of the Kronotski Reserve are home to several protected species: the Kamchatka brown bear, lynx, sable, and fox. Facing Kamchatka across the Bering Strait, Alaska offers a similar landscape. Twenty-six thousand years ago small groups of people crossed the strait, at that time dry land, and gradually populated all of the Americas. The Sioux, the Inca, and the Guarani are all descendants of the people from Kamchatka.
A mountainous peninsula of volcanic origin at Siberia’s far eastern end, Kamchatka is a place apart in the Russian Federation. It is remote from the capital—by more than 3,700 miles (6,000 km)—and the Russian authorities have done little to encourage its development since the breakup of the Soviet Union. Yet Kamchatka plays a part in Russian economic life, thanks to its forest and agricultural resources, the development of its coastal towns, and its fisheries. The population is concentrated in the towns and consists largely of Russians, who mingle with older residents such as the Kamchadales. These nomads, also known as Itelmens, have retained their traditional way of life and live chiefly from fishing. Only about 18,000 are thought to remain of a people who were once the most numerous on the peninsula.
At the confluence of the Samara and Volga rivers, the industrial town of Samara stretches some distance with its machine industry, petrochemical, aeronautics, and food industry plants. Samara—formerly called Kuibyshev—was where the Soviet government took refuge during the Nazi invasion. Later, the town reverted to its Russian identity—witness this recent church, which rises in front of the apartment blocks of the industrial city. In 1914, more than 50,000 churches were still active; by 1941, after closures and demolitions, fewer than 1,000 were still open to worshipers. State and religion were reconciled in 1988, during the millennium celebrations of the baptism of Russia. Since then, churches have been opening constantly in the country. Russian Orthodox, Catholics, Baptists, Jews, and even Hare Krishnas now have legal status. Today’s freedom of worship might almost have effaced yesterday’s religious persecution. But the repairs, restoration, and new reconstruction are a visible reminder that yesterday was not long ago.
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