An eastern Russian volcano has erupted for the first time in more than 500 years, which may have been related to an 8.8 magnitude earthquake last week, experts said.

Russia's remote Krasheninnikov volcano, dormant for roughly 600 years, erupted overnight in Kamchatka peninsula in the country's far east, just days after a powerful 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck the region.

The eruption occurred after a huge earthquake struck Russia’s Far East early Wednesday, an 8.8-magnitude temblor that caused small tsunami waves in Japan and Alaska and prompted warnings for Hawaii, North and Central America and Pacific islands south toward New Zealand.