ISS Captures Volcanic Eruption

Framed by a circle of clouds, this is a stunning illustration of Nature's powerful force. A plume of smoke, ash and steam soars five miles into the sky from an erupting volcano. The extraordinary image was captured by the crew of the International Space Station 220 miles above a remote Russian island in the North Pacific.

Sarychev Peak, Matua Island in Russia's Kuril Archipelago in the Northern Pacific. Check out the other pictures, too.

Thankfully, Matua Island is uninhabited. The eruption of Sarychev Peak began a week ago and is still under way. The International Space Station has continued to track the ash cloud over the last few days. The plume is a few hundred miles from one of the world's busiest air corridors. Hundreds of flights across the Pacific have been diverted to avoid any chance of it knocking out plane engines. Sarychev Peak is one of the most active volcanoes in Russia's Kuril archipelago. Eruptions have been recorded as far back as the 1700s, with the last known one in 1989.

This thing is spewing out all kinds of pollutants, and the plume is dangerous for air traffic. So I'm a pessimist with questions. Once we have the new cap and trade carbon taxes in place, who will pay for this? Seems like the EPA would be all over it considering the magnitude of pollution being produced. And just how many of us would have to drive hybrids for just how many years and miles to make up for this major pollution transgression? CO2, SO2 and mercury (Hg) are some of the goodies that blow from the volcanic tailpipes.

I'm just askin.'