When a natural disaster strikes, it often produces spectacular images of epic proportion – and the recent volcano eruption in Chile is no exception.

Located in southern Chile, the Calbuco volcano started rumbling and spewing ash into the atmosphere a couple of days ago, and yesterday one of the largest explosions could be heard, felt and seen for miles all around.

Luckily for us, a number of people were around to capture the epic culmination of nature’s might. What makes this eruption so special, is that it is the first time it has erupted in over 40 years.

Der #Vulkan #Calbuco in Chile spuckt eine kilometerhohe Aschewolke aus. Tausende Menschen wurden in Sicherheit gebracht. Alle Bilder findet ihr auf wetter.com!

A photo posted by wetter.com (@wettercom) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:55am PDT

This is truly breathtaking. The images coming out of the Volcano ‘Calbuco’, in Chile, are unreal. Apocalyptic. #Chile #volcano #calbuco A photo posted by Duncan Cox (@simplydunk) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:53am PDT

get up chile

A photo posted by Octavio Donoso (@wolf_tavo) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:51am PDT

#chili #calbuco #volcano #nature #nature_perfection A photo posted by Hüseyin Kanber (@huseynkanber) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:51am PDT

Tremenda foto #volcan #calbuco #chile #SurfDeChile #vulcano #PuertoMontt #Ensenada #PuertoVaras #DiaDeLaNaturaleza #fuego #relampagos #fire #volcanochile

A photo posted by Pedro Cifuentes (@pedro_cifuentes) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:50am PDT

#Chile #Volcano #Calbuco #Eruption #Sunset #NoFilter A photo posted by Uribe-Gallón (@santiagouribegallon) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:45am PDT

#calbuco #frutillar

A photo posted by @javierjosemm on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:43am PDT

El volcán Calbuco, en el sur de Chile, erupcionó finalmente, por primera vez en 42 años, obligando al Gobierno a declarar “alerta roja” y evacuar a miles de residentes de comunidades cercanas. #mediactual #Volcal #Calbuco #Chile #AlertaRoja #Evacuar #ElNacionalWeb #Erupcion #Natgeo A photo posted by mediactual (@mediactual) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:42am PDT

Todos lo hacían #remember #volcan #calbuco #costanera #puertomontt #day #sky #explosion #blue #moment #epic #l4l #picoftheday #instachile #loslagos

A photo posted by Eduardo Javier (@lalopeluuza) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:41am PDT

Volcán Calbuco… #volcano #eruption #emergency #chile #calbuco #landscape #sky #nature A photo posted by Esteban (@stevendiseno) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:37am PDT

Volcano Calbuco, Cile #volcano #calbuco

A photo posted by Photo All TheWorld✈️ (@photoalltheworld) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:34am PDT

The view from #Frutillar, #southern #Chile, shows a high column of #ash and #lava spewing from the #Calbuco #volcano, on April 23, 2015. A photo posted by Qaiser Wakeel Khattak (@qaiserwakeel) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:31am PDT

SANTIAGO, Chile — The Calbuco volcano erupted Wednesday for the first time in more than 42 years, billowing a huge ash cloud over a sparsely populated, mountainous area in southern Chile. The 6,500 foot (2,000-meter) Calbuco last erupted in 1972 and is considered one of the top three most potentially dangerous among Chile’s 90 active volcanos. #Calbuco #Volcano #eruption #lightning #Chile #Sunset #VolcanCalbuco #picoftheday #photooftheday #instapic #instagram #photooftheday #followme #webstagram #instafollow #bestoftheday #outdoors #nature

A photo posted by Ram Gabriel (@coastalbydesign) on Apr 23, 2015 at 4:58am PDT

Have a look at the great high-speed video footage below: