[1] It covers a surface area of 2,000 square kilometres (770 sq mi) west of Lake Baikal.

The youngest dated volcanic centre was active 48,000 ± 20,000 years ago, but some lava flows may be even younger.

[3] There it covers a surface area of 2,000 square kilometres (770 sq mi) west of Lake Baikal,[1] at an altitude of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).

[5] It is part of the Tuva volcanic province of the Baikal Rift Zone, which is linked to a hotspot that has raised the terrain as high as 3,000 metres (9,800 ft).

[15] A large lava field with thicknesses of c. 250 metres (820 ft) formed during the Late Pliocene, when the largest eruptions took place.

[17] Nine volcanoes bearing evidence of having formed beneath ice are found in the southeastern part of the field.

[22] Individual volcanoes in the Azas Plateau volcanic field include the Derbi-Taiga tuya (52°22′15″N 98°14′8″E / 52.37083°N 98.23556°E / 52.37083; 98.23556[23]), which is formed by several layers of hyaloclastite and lava flows and displays a prominent "winged" topography.

[27] Shivit-Taiga with a length of over 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) and a height of 500 metres (1,600 ft) is among the biggest volcanoes in the world that formed beneath ice, but Derby-Taiga may be even larger depending on how the size is measured.

[28] Shivit-Taiga covers a surface of 100 square kilometres (39 sq mi) and is 500 metres (1,600 ft) high.

[20] The Azas Plateau was affected by an ice sheet which formed on the East Sayan mountains during the Pleistocene.

[34] Non-tuya volcanic ice interaction landforms are also found, such as Albine-Bondok, Charash-Dag and Sagan which are subglacial mounds.

[35] Glacier retreat was underway by the isotope stage 3 (57,000 - 24,000 years ago), when some volcanoes formed in the air.

[39] The first volcanic activity beginning 2 million years ago formed voluminous lava flows from fissure vents.

[12] Volcanic activity between 1.65 - 1.75 mya occurred beneath ice in the ancient valleys of the Bii Khem river.

[43] It is possible that when eruptions in the Azas Plateau occurred beneath ice, they caused floods of glacial meltwater called Jokulhlaup;[44] corresponding landforms have been found at Derbi-Taiga and Shivit-Taiga volcanoes.