Russian Federation

Saint Basil's Cathedral, Moscow in winter.

The Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Saint Petersburg - also known as the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood - was built on the site of the assassination of Alexander II. Its richly decorated façade and "onion domes" resemble those of the celebrated Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.

The Kuril Island chain is built from a line of volcanoes, an island arc, that extends from Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula to northern Japan. Island arcs form along an active boundary between two tectonic plates, with one being driven beneath the other (subduction). Magma generated by subduction feeds volcanoes - and eventually volcanic islands - over the subduction boundary. Paramushir Island in the northern Kurils is an example of a large island built by several volcanoes over geologic time. This astronaut photograph shows the southern end of Paramushir Island after a snowfall. The western slopes of the mountains are brightly illuminated, while the eastern slopes are in shadow. Four major volcanic centers create this part of the island. Fuss Peak (image center left) is an isolated stratovolcano connected to the main island via an isthmus. Fuss Peak last erupted in 1854. The southern tip of the island is occupied by the Karpinsky Group of three volcanic centers. A minor eruption of ash following an earthquake occurred on this part of the island in 1952. The Lomonosov Group to the northeast (image center) includes four cinder cones and a lava dome. The most recent volcanic activity on Paramushir Island occurred in 2008 at the Chikurachki cone located along the northern coastline of the island at image top center. The summit of this volcano, 1,816 m (5,958 ft) above sea level, is the highest on Paramushir Island. Much of the Sea of Okhotsk visible in the image is covered with low clouds that often form around the islands in the Kuril chain. The clouds are generated by moisture-laden air passing over the cool sea/ocean water, and they typically wrap around the volcanic islands. Image courtesy of NASA.

A fortuitous orbit of the International Space Station allowed the astronauts to take this striking view of Sarychev Peak volcano (Russia's Kuril Islands, northeast of Japan) in an early stage of eruption on 12 June 2009. Sarychev Peak is one of the most active volcanoes in the Kuril Island chain and is located on the northwestern end of Matua Island. Prior to 12 June, the last explosive eruption had occurred in 1989 with eruptions in 1986, 1976, 1954, and 1946 also producing lava flows. This detailed photograph is exciting to volcanologists because it captures several phenomena that occur during the earliest stages of an explosive volcanic eruption. The main column is one of a series of plumes that rose above Matua Island on June 12. The plume appears to be a combination of brown ash and white steam. The vigorously rising plume gives the steam a bubble-like appearance; the surrounding atmosphere has been shoved up by the shock wave of the eruption. The smooth white cloud on top may be water condensation that resulted from rapid rising and cooling of the air mass above the ash column, and is probably a transient feature (the eruption plume is starting to punch through). The structure also indicates that little or no shearing winds were present at the time to disrupt the plume. By contrast, a cloud of denser, gray ash - most probably a pyroclastic flow - appears to be hugging the ground, descending from the volcano summit. The rising eruption plume casts a shadow to the northwest of the island (bottom center). Brown ash at a lower altitude of the atmosphere spreads out above the ground at upper right. Low-level stratus clouds approach Matua Island from the east, wrapping around the lower slopes of the volcano. Only about 1.5 km (1 mi) of the coastline of Matua Island (upper center) can be seen beneath the clouds and ash. Image courtesy of NASA.

Peterhof Palace, near Saint Petersburg, sits atop a hill overlooking the Gulf of Finland. The Palace boasts a remarkable array of 64 decorative fountains, including a spectacular sculpture of Samson prying open the jaws of a lion as water cascades down terraced steps in the background. This was Peter I's summer palace.

Close up of some of the colorful domes of Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.