Logo link to homepage

Report on Kuchinoerabujima (Japan) — 24 February-2 March 2021


Kuchinoerabujima

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 24 February-2 March 2021
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2021. Report on Kuchinoerabujima (Japan) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 24 February-2 March 2021. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (24 February-2 March 2021)

Kuchinoerabujima

Japan

30.443°N, 130.217°E; summit elev. 657 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


JMA reported that the number of volcanic earthquakes located at shallow depths beneath Kuchinoerabujima’s Shindake Crater increased on 21 February and remained elevated. The Alert Level was raised to 3 (the middle level on a scale of 1-5) on 28 February. No other monitoring data showed upward trends and no surficial changes were visible; sulfur dioxide emissions remained low at 60 tons per day on 24 February.

Geological Summary. A group of young stratovolcanoes forms the eastern end of the irregularly shaped island of Kuchinoerabujima in the northern Ryukyu Islands, 15 km W of Yakushima. The Furudake, Shindake, and Noikeyama cones were erupted from south to north, respectively, forming a composite cone with multiple craters. All historical eruptions have occurred from Shindake, although a lava flow from the S flank of Furudake that reached the coast has a very fresh morphology. Frequent explosive eruptions have taken place from Shindake since 1840; the largest of these was in December 1933. Several villages on the 4 x 12 km island are located within a few kilometers of the active crater and have suffered damage from eruptions.

Source: Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA)