Nature & Environment
Underwater Volcano Eruption Creates New Island off the Coast of Japan [VIDEO]
Benita Matilda
First Posted: Nov 21, 2013 07:03 AM EST
An underwater volcanic eruption gave rise to a new island measuring 200 meters in diameter in the Pacific Ocean about 620 miles south of Tokyo, Wednesday morning.
There are nearly 30 islands 620 miles south of Tokyo, which are a part of the seismically active Pacific 'Ring of Fire'. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the volcanic eruption gave rise to the new islet off the coast of Nishinoshima, a small uninhabited island in the Ogasawara chain, also called as the Bonin Islands, reports the Associated Press.
The newly created islet that continues to emit ash, rocks and smoke from the crater reaching to a height of 600 meters, is a threat to the surrounding fishing area.
The formation of the islet also expands the country's territorial waters.
Volcanologist Hiroshi Ito told the FNN news network that at the moment they cannot predict whether the island would survive because in the past the islets created by undersea volcano eruptions have gradually disappeared after a period of time.
Prior to this a similar undersea volcanic eruption in Japan occurred in the 1970s and 1980s. But the islands formed then were eroded by the ocean tides, reports IB Times.
Due to the continuous emission of heavy black smoke, the officials have passed a navigation warning. This is the first volcanic eruption noticed in the Nishinoshima islet since 1974..
Welcoming the new territory, Japan's chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said "If it becomes a full-fledged island, we would be happy to have more territory."
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First Posted: Nov 21, 2013 07:03 AM EST
An underwater volcanic eruption gave rise to a new island measuring 200 meters in diameter in the Pacific Ocean about 620 miles south of Tokyo, Wednesday morning.
There are nearly 30 islands 620 miles south of Tokyo, which are a part of the seismically active Pacific 'Ring of Fire'. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the volcanic eruption gave rise to the new islet off the coast of Nishinoshima, a small uninhabited island in the Ogasawara chain, also called as the Bonin Islands, reports the Associated Press.
The newly created islet that continues to emit ash, rocks and smoke from the crater reaching to a height of 600 meters, is a threat to the surrounding fishing area.
The formation of the islet also expands the country's territorial waters.
Volcanologist Hiroshi Ito told the FNN news network that at the moment they cannot predict whether the island would survive because in the past the islets created by undersea volcano eruptions have gradually disappeared after a period of time.
Prior to this a similar undersea volcanic eruption in Japan occurred in the 1970s and 1980s. But the islands formed then were eroded by the ocean tides, reports IB Times.
Due to the continuous emission of heavy black smoke, the officials have passed a navigation warning. This is the first volcanic eruption noticed in the Nishinoshima islet since 1974..
Welcoming the new territory, Japan's chief government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said "If it becomes a full-fledged island, we would be happy to have more territory."
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone