Scientists have identified the “mystery volcano” that erupted in 1831 and cooled Earth’s climate. They have linked it to an island volcano in the northwest Pacific Ocean.

Nearly two centuries after a massive volcanic eruption cooled Earth’s climate, scientists have identified the source: the Zavaritskii volcano in the remote Kuril Islands. For almost 200 years, the source of a powerful 1831 volcanic eruption that cooled the Earth remained unknown.

A massive volcano opened wide its jaws and belched forth so much ash and smoke that the skies dimmed, cooling the Northern Hemisphere. Crops failed. People starved. Yet for all the devastation, the volcano's location remained a mystery.