, native_name_link = , image_caption = Kita-Iwō-jima , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = North Iwo Jima , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_alt = , pushpin_relief = , pushpin_map_caption = , map_custom = , nickname = , location = Pacific Ocean , coordinates = , archipelago =

Volcano Islands The or are a group of three Japanese-governed islands in Micronesia. They lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and belong to the municipality of Ogasawara, Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. The islands are all active volcanoes lying atop ...

, total_islands = , major_islands = , area_km2 = 5.57 , length_km = , width_km = , coastline_km = 8.0 , highest_mount = Sakagi-ga-mine , elevation_m = 792 , country = Japan , country_admin_divisions_title =

Prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

, country_admin_divisions = Tokyo , country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Subprefecture , country_admin_divisions_1 =

Ogasawara Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. The subprefecture covers the Ogasawara Archipelago and is coterminous with the village of Ogasawara. The prefectural government maintains a main office on Chichijima and a branch office on Hahaji ...

, country_admin_divisions_title_2 = Village , country_admin_divisions_2 = Ogasawara , population = 0 , population_as_of = , density_km2 = 0 , ethnic_groups = , additional_info = is the northernmost island of the

group of the Bonin Islands, 80 km north of

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

. It is located south of Tokyo, and south-southwest of Chichijima.

Geography

The island consists of the heavily eroded peak of an active

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and per ...

, which rises above sea level ( according to other sources). Having a volume of , it is the largest volcano in Japan by volume. The peak is called , with another peak at . It has an area of , and it has a shore length of . It is an uninhabited part of the municipality of Ogasawara. Its Japanese name was changed to Kita-Iōtō on 18 June 2007. The island forms part of the Kazan-retto islands

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA), designated by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

History

First sighting by Europeans was in October 1543 by Spanish navigator

Bernardo de la Torre Bernardo de la Torre was a Spanish sailor, primarily noted for having explored parts of the Western Pacific Ocean south of Japan in the 16th century. Bernardo de la Torre sailed under the instructions of Ruy López de Villalobos, who sent him in Au ...

on board of

carrack A carrack (; ; ; ) is a three- or four- masted ocean-going sailing ship that was developed in the 14th to 15th centuries in Europe, most notably in Portugal. Evolved from the single-masted cog, the carrack was first used for European trade fr ...

''San Juan de Letrán'', when trying to return from

Sarangani Sarangani, officially the Province of Sarangani ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sarangani; hil, Kapuoran sang Sarangani; Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Sarangani'', Jawi: دايرت نو سارڠني; fil, Lalawigan ng Sarangani), is a province in the Philipp ...

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...

. The island was formerly inhabited. It was first settled by fishermen from the Bonin Islands in 1898, who lived in two towns, Ishinomura (east) and Nishimura (west). At the start of World War II, the population was 103. The civilian population was evacuated during the war. Unincorporated until 1940, it became part of the newly created municipality of Iōtō in 1940, which was included in the town of Ogasawara in 1968 upon the return of the islands by the United States to Japan. Four men, flying a United States Navy S-3B Viking jet from the U.S. aircraft carrier ''John C. Stennis'', died when their aircraft crashed on 10 August 2004 on North Iwo Jima during a naval exercise over the Pacific Ocean. They were Lt. Cmdr. Scott A. Zellem, 35, of Indiana, Pennsylvania; Lt. Patrick S. Myrick, 31, of Seattle; Lt. James J. Pupplo, 34, of Selden, New York; and Petty Officer 2nd Class Joshua B. Showalter, 24, of Fontana, California.

2009 total solar eclipse

During the

solar eclipse of 22 July 2009 A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of the orbit on July 22, 2009, with a magnitude of 1.07991. It was the longest total solar eclipse during the 21st century, the longest total solar eclipse during the 3rd millennium wil ...

, the island had nearly six and a half minutes of totality, longer than any other land mass.Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA's GSFC - map of Iwo Jima region
/ref>

Gallery

File:FA-18E Super Hornet of VFA-115 in flight off Kita Iwo Jima in May 2016.JPG File:Kita-Ioto East 20120309.jpg, Kita-Ioto Island seen from the east File:Kita-Ioto NW 20120309.jpg, Kita-Ioto Island seen from the NW File:Kita-Ioto South 20120309.jpg, Kita-Ioto Island seen from the south File:Kita-Ioto SSE 20120309.jpg, Kita-Ioto Island seen from the SSE File:Kita-Ioto SW 20120309.jpg, Kita-Ioto Island seen from the SW File:Kita-ioto.jpg, NW side of Kita-Iwojima

References

External links

*
N. Iwo Jima page
{{Authority control Volcano Islands Volcanoes of Tokyo Uninhabited islands of Japan Former populated places in Oceania Former populated places in Japan Islands of Tokyo Important Bird Areas of the Nanpo Islands Seabird colonies