, native_name_link=, image_caption=Kuchinoerabu-jima from Nagatadake on Yakushima, image_size=, map_image=OsumiIslands.png, map_caption=, location=
East China Sea, coordinates=, archipelago=
Ćsumi Islands
The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are the northernmost group of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain extends from the southern tip of Kyushu to Yakushima. Administratively, the group ...
, total_islands=, major_islands=, area_km2=38.04, length_km=12, width_km=5, coastline_km=49.67, highest_mount=Furudake, elevation_m=657, country=, country_admin_divisions_title=, country_admin_divisions=
Kagoshima Prefecture, population=147, population_as_of=2010, density_km2=, ethnic_groups=
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
, additional_info=Last eruption date 2020
, is one of the
Satsunan Islands
The is a geopolitical name for a group of islands that forms the northern part of the Ryukyu Islands. The whole island group belongs to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.
Major islands
* Satsunan Islands
** Ćsumi Islands with:
*** Tanegashima, Yak ...
, usually classed with the
Ćsumi Islands
The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are the northernmost group of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain extends from the southern tip of Kyushu to Yakushima. Administratively, the group ...
belonging to
Kagoshima Prefecture,
Japan. The island, 38.04 kmÂČ in area, has a population of 147. The island can only be reached by boat as it has no airport. There is regular ferry service with
Yakushima
is one of the Ćsumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of 13,178. Access to the island is by hydrofoil ferry (7 or 8 times a day from Kagoshima, depending on the season), slow car ferry (once or tw ...
, which is about 15 km to the east. Travel time is approximately 1 hour. The islanders are dependent mainly on fishing, agriculture and seasonal tourism. The entire island is within the borders of the
Kirishima-Yaku National Park.
Geography
Kuchinoerabu-jima is located south of
Kagoshima
, abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...
. The island is of volcanic origin, and has an area of approximately with a length of and width of . The highest elevations on the island are , with a height of and , with a height of above sea level. There are numerous hot springs on the island.

The island is an active volcano which has erupted several times during the modern period, including 24 December 1933, when several people were killed when lava masses buried several villages. In 1980, multiple explosion craters appeared along an north-south fissure on the slope east of Shindake. Shindake erupted again on 4 August 2014, generating a
pyroclastic flow
A pyroclastic flow (also known as a pyroclastic density current or a pyroclastic cloud) is a fast-moving current of hot gas and volcanic matter (collectively known as tephra) that flows along the ground away from a volcano at average speeds of b ...
, but with no injuries or fatalities. The main crater erupted on the morning of 29 May 2015, prompting a level 5 alert level and the evacuation of the island.
The islandâs climate is classified as subtropical, with a rainy season from May through September.
History
During the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional ''daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...
, Kuchinoerabu-jima was ruled by the
Shimazu clan
The were the ''daimyĆ'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ćsumi and HyĆ«ga provinces in Japan.
The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyĆ'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in cont ...
of
Satsuma Domain
The , briefly known as the , was a domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1602 to 1871.
The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of Kagoshim ...
and was considered part of
Ćsumi Province
was an old province of Japan in the area that is today the eastern part of Kagoshima Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Ćsumi bordered on HyĆ«ga and Satsuma Provinces.
Osumi's ancient capital was near modern Kokubu. During the Sengoku ...
. Following the
Meiji restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were r ...
, it was administered as Kuchinoerabujima Village, which encompassed part of Yakushima. It is now part of the city of
Yakushima, Kagoshima.
Kuchinoerabu-jima is the last known location of missing American poet
Craig Arnold
Craig Arnold (November 16, 1967 – April 27, 2009) was an American poet and professor. His first book of poems, ''Shells'' (1999), was selected by W. S. Merwin for the Yale Series of Younger Poets. His many honors include the 2005 Joseph ...
, who was visiting the island in April 2009, doing research for a book on volcanos.
Volcanic eruptions of Mount Shindake
On May 18, 2015 Japanese scientists detected increased seismic activity and steam rising from the Shindake's crater, and on May 29, 2015 an eruption sent an ash cloud an estimated 30,000 feet (9,100 meters) into the sky. No deaths and only one minor injury were reported by the Japanese government. The islandâs 140 residents were evacuated by Japanâs coast guard. Previous eruptions occurred in August, 2014 and in 1980.
Shindake crater erupted on December 18, 2018, ejecting an ash cloud 2 kilometers into above cloud coverage. Thirty days later on January 17, 2019, Shindake erupted again, sending pyroclastic flows 1.5 kilometers to the southwest and northwest of the crater as well as an ash cloud 6 kilometers into the atmosphere.
See also
*
List of islands in Japan
Japan is an archipelago of 6,852 islands, of which approximately 260 are inhabited. Japan is the largest island country in East Asia and the fourth largest in the world.
Main islands
The four ''main islands'' of Japan are:Imperial Japane ...
*
List of volcanoes in Japan
This is a list of active and extinct volcanoes in Japan. An Orange background indicates a volcano considered active by the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Hokkaido
Honshƫ
Izu Islands
Ogasawara Archipelago
The Ogasawara Archipela ...
References
Further reading
*Siebert, Lee. ''Volcanoes of the World''. University of California Press. (2008)
*Reed, Christina. ''Earth Science Decade by Decade''. Infobase Publishing (2008)
External links
*
Kuchinoerabujima- Japan Meteorological Agency
* - Japan Meteorological Agency
- Geological Survey of Japan
*
{{Authority control
Ćsumi Islands
Stratovolcanoes of Japan
Active volcanoes
VEI-4 volcanoes
Volcanoes of Kagoshima Prefecture
20th-century volcanic events
Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture
Holocene stratovolcanoes