is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea, off the coast of

Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island s ...

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 n ...

, east of the Izu Peninsula and southwest of Bōsō Peninsula. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Izu Ōshima forms part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. Izu Ōshima, at is the largest and closest of Tokyo's outlying islands, which also include the

Ogasawara Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic read ...

Geography

The island is a stratovolcano with a

basaltic Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron ( mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than ...

composite cone, dating from the late

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

period, between 10,000 and 15,000 years ago. It rises from an ocean floor with a depth of between . The island has a roughly circular coastline of approximately in length. The highest elevation, , is an active volcano with a height of . The mountain has been recorded to have erupted numerous times through history and is mentioned as far back as Nara period written records. Major eruptions occurred in 1965 and 1986, each forcing the temporary evacuation of the inhabitants. The last recorded eruption was in 1990. The epicenter of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, which devastated Tokyo and the surrounding region, was deep beneath Izu Ōshima Island.

Important Bird Area

The island has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of Japanese wood pigeons, Ijima's leaf-warblers, Izu thrushes and Pleske's grasshopper warblers.

Climate

Izu Ōshima has a humid subtropical climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Cfa'') with warm summers and cool winters. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year, but is somewhat lower in winter than the rest of the year.

Administration

The island is administered by the Ōshima subprefecture of the Tokyo Metropolitan government. serves as the local government of the island. Ōshima Town consists of the six traditional hamlets of Okata (岡田), Motomachi (元町), Senzu, Nomashi, Sashikiji and Habuminato (波浮港), with Motomachi as the administrative center.

Access

Izu Ōshima is a popular site for touristsTokyo Island
"Oshima island"
/ref> from both Tokyo and Shizuoka due to its close proximity to the mainland. There are a number of ferries which leave from Takeshiba Sanbashi ''Pier'', near Hamamatsuchō, Tokyo to Motomachi Port. Ferries also leave from Atami in Shizuoka to Motomachi Port. Both lanes are operated by Tōkai Kisen There are several flights per day from Ōshima Airport to Chōfu Airport in

Chōfu is a city in the western side of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 238,087, and a population density of 11,000 per km². the total area of the city is . Geography Chōfu is approximately in the south-center o ...

In popular culture

Mount Mihara and Izu Ōshima featured prominently in ''

The Return of Godzilla is a 1984 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Koji Hashimoto, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. The film features the fictional monster character Godzilla. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is th ...

'', as the location in which the JSDF successfully trapped

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film '' Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produ ...

after luring him to the crater, whereupon charges were detonated, sending him falling into the magma-filled volcano. Mt. Mihara appeared again in the direct sequel, '' Godzilla vs. Biollante'', in which Godzilla was released when the volcano erupted. Mt. Mihara and Izu Ōshima were also featured in Koji Suzuki's ''Ring'' and its film adaptation as pivotal locations for the story. In the Pokémon franchise, Cinnabar Island is based on Izu Ōshima. In the anime Vividred Operation, Izu Ōshima is the home of several protagonists.

Gallery

File:Izu-Oshima-IMG 4759.jpg, Mt. Mihara with azaleas in the foreground File:MiharaMountainTop.JPG, Summit crater File:Izu Oshima Volcano Museum.jpg, Izu Oshima Volcano Museum, Motomachi,

Ōshima, Tokyo is a town located in Ōshima Subprefecture, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 7,762, and a population density of 85.5 persons per km². Its total area is . Geography Ōshima Town covers the island of Izu Ō ...

Notes

References

* Hammer, Joshua. (2006)
''Yokohama Burning: The Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II.''
New York:

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publi ...

. (cloth)

External links

Ōshima Town Official Website

- Japan Meteorological Agency * - Japan Meteorological Agency

- Geological Survey of Japan *
Tokyo Islands
- - English Ship booking to Tokyo Islands(Izu Islands) and travel Information Page of Izu Oshima and other islands in Tokyo * {{DEFAULTSORT:Izu Oshima Izu Islands Islands of Tokyo Important Bird Areas of the Nanpo Islands Active volcanoes