Aogashima
Native name: | |
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Geography | |
Location | Izu Islands |
Coordinates | 32°27′25.2″N 139°46′1.2″E / 32.457000°N 139.767000°E |
Archipelago | Izu Islands |
Area | 8.75 km2 (3.38 sq mi) |
Length | 3.5 km (2.17 mi) |
Width | 2.5 km (1.55 mi) |
Coastline | 9 km (5.6 mi) |
Highest elevation | 423 m (1388 ft) |
Administration | |
Japan | |
Prefecture | Tokyo |
Subprefecture | Hachijō Subprefecture |
Village | Aogashima |
Demographics | |
Population | 170 (January 2014) |
Aogashima (
The island is administered by the village of Aogashima, which is subordinate to the Hachijō Subprefecture, which itself is governed by the City of Tokyo. The island has an area of 8.75 km2 (3.38 sq mi), and, as of 2014[update], its population is a mere 170 people. This means that the village of Aogashima has the smallest population of any municipality in Japan. Aogashima is also part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.
Geology[edit]
Aogashima is a complex Quaternary volcanic island 3.5 km in length with a maximum width of 2.5 km, formed by the overlapping remnants of at least four submarine calderas. The island is surrounded by very steep rugged cliffs of layered volcanic deposits. The southern coast also rises to a sharp ridge forming one edge of a caldera named Ikenosawa (
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Maruyama is the central cone in the caldera
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Maruyama in a close view
Important Bird Area[edit]
The island has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of Japanese woodpigeons, Pleske's grasshopper warblers, Ijima's leaf-warblers and Izu thrushes.[3]
History[edit]
The history of human settlement on Aogashima is uncertain. Most of the people on Aogashima are Japanese. The island is mentioned in Edo period records kept at Hachijō-jima, which recorded volcanic activity in 1652, and from 1670 to 1680. An earthquake swarm in July 1780 was followed by steam rising from the lakes in the Ikenosawa Caldera. Further earthquakes in May 1781 led to an eruption. In April 1783, lava flows from the Maruyama cone resulted in the evacuation of all 63 households on the island. During a massive eruption in 1785, some 130–140 of the population of 327 islanders perished. There has been no significant volcanic activity since the 18th century.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Gotoh, H. et al. (2010). "Infrastructure Maintenance and Disaster Prevention Measures on Isolated Islands: the Case of the Izu Islands near Tokyo" in Island Sustainability (Favro, S., editor), p. 187.
- ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Izu Shotō," Japan Encyclopedia, p. 412.
- ^ "Aogashima Island". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
External links[edit]
- Aogashima Village Official Website
- Aogashima - Japan Meteorological Agency (in Japanese)
- "Aogashima: National catalogue of the active volcanoes in Japan" (PDF). - Japan Meteorological Agency
- Aogashima - Geological Survey of Japan
- "Aogashima". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2021-06-25.