Anybody know this place?

[kayshapero]

I was poking around in Google Earth, and happened upon a region in the Kamchatka peninsula with bright pink and orange mountains. The only label I could find was Gora Ketepana, and Googling around for that name produced nothing but maps to the location in question. Anyway, here's what it looks like at an angle from within Google Earth (I tilted it a mite to bring out the three dimensions). I imagine it's some sort of volcanic effect, given the nature of the peninsula, but I haven't seen it elsewhere. Anybody?

Comments

Algal bloom?

[murasaki99.livejournal.com]

Hmm, if Gora Ketepana is a pair of active volcanoes, that might be layers of bacterial/algal bloom caused by the output of compounds downwind. Hydrogen sulfide is what the tiny life forms around 'black smokers' in deep-sea vents use for energy, and sulfur and H2S can be a big component of venting surface volcanoes.

Either that or Google Earth is using some false-color overlays. But I'd suspect sulfur and heat-loving bacteria first. I'm using some salt from an ancient (Jurassic era) Utah seabed that is pink like that photo. Lots of nice trace minerals. :)

Re: Algal bloom?

[msminlr.livejournal.com]

I was suspecting the false-color image myself.
Google Earth gets its images from all kinds of sources.

Re: Algal bloom?

[kayshapero]

Which is one of the reasons I've been trying to find out something about the place other than the Google Earth image and the maps. Next time I get to the library I shall check the geography section and things like that there.

[kitarra.livejournal.com]

Can I have the real coordinates please. I am not sure that the translation of the name is right. Gora is mountain. Singular. So that's a bit odd.

[kengr]

The lat & long are along the bottom edge of the image at the left.

[kengr]

The red looks a *lot* like a local clay here near Mt. Hood. Decomposed minerals with a high iron content.