was a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

coincident with

Notojima is a volcanic island in the Nanao Bay () portion of the Sea of Japan, less than 500 meters off the coast of the Ishikawa prefecture in Japan. Notojima Island is administered as part of Nanao city. The two bridges connecting Notojima to the ...

island in Kashima District,

Ishikawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,140,573 (31 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,186 km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It was formed February 1, 1955 by merger of the three villages on

island. As of 2003, the town had an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 3,187 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...

of 68.13 persons per km². The total area was 46.78 km². The

Hirokami, Niigata was a village located in Kitauonuma District, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the village had an estimated population of 8,892 and a density of 84.17 persons per km². The total area was 105.64 km². On November 1, 2004, Hirokami ...

was the sister city of Notojima. On October 1, 2004, Notojima, along with the towns of Nakajima and Tatsuruhama (all from Kashima District), was merged into the expanded city of Nanao and no longer exists as an independent

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Sights

* At the Notojima Aquarium visitors can watch

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...

and

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

shows, animal feeding and meet many species in the 'touch and feel' tank. The aquarium also has a collection of jellyfish. In addition,

whale sharks The whale shark (''Rhincodon typus'') is a slow-moving, filter-feeding carpet shark and the largest known extant fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of .McClain CR, Balk MA, Benfield MC, Branch TA, Chen C, Cosgrove J, ...

also live in the facility newly established in 2010. * The Notojima Glass Museum is the only public specialized glass art museum in Japan. The open space outside the Museum also has 14 glass sculptures.

External links

Official website of Nanao

Notojima Glass Museum
* Notojima Aquariu
JapaneseEnglish
Dissolved municipalities of Ishikawa Prefecture Nanao, Ishikawa {{Ishikawa-geo-stub