Mount Ararat Seen from Space

The biblical Mount Ararat seen from space. Photograph by cosmonaut Sergey Ryazansky.

This dormant volcano, crowned with eternal snow, draws mountaineers, tourists and pilgrims from all over the world. According to biblical tradition, Noah’s Ark came to rest on Ararat. Ararat is the highest point of the Armenian Highlands. The volcanic massif has 2 peaks: Greater (5165 m) and Lesser (3925 m) Ararat. The last eruption took place in 1840, destroying the village of Akori and the Monastery of St Hakob, and since then no one has lived there.

The photograph shows the 2 snow-covered peaks of Ararat surrounded by brown mountainous terrain.