Strong eruption at Suwanosejima volcano, Alert Level raised, Japan
Image credit: JMA
A strong explosive eruption took place at Suwanosejima's Mt. Otake crater at 17:51 UTC on December 27, 2020 (02:51 JST, December 28). As a result, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) raised the Alert Level from 2 to 3 — Near-crater warning, do not approach the volcano — at 17:56 UTC.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
JMA said large rocks were thrown some 1.3 km (0.8 miles) from the crater and warned they could affect an area of about 2 km (1.2 miles) from the crater at any time.
A dense dark ash plume rose to approximately 1.8 km (6 000 feet) a.s.l., drifting SE.
Activity at the volcano continues at moderately high levels, accompanied by a strong glow from the crater.
The Japanese government has set up a liaison office at the prime minister's office to gather more information, Kyodo reported.
Image credit: JMA
Image credit: JMA
Image credit: JMA
Geological summary
The 8 km (5 miles) long, spindle-shaped island of Suwanosejima in the northern Ryukyu Islands consists of an andesitic stratovolcano with two historically active summit craters. The summit is truncated by a large breached crater extending to the sea on the east flank that was formed by edifice collapse.
Suwanosejima, one of Japan's most frequently active volcanoes, was in a state of intermittent strombolian activity from Otake, the NE summit crater, that began in 1949 and lasted until 1996, after which periods of inactivity lengthened.
The largest historical eruption took place in 1813-14 when thick scoria deposits blanketed residential areas, and the SW crater produced two lava flows that reached the western coast.
At the end of the eruption, the summit of Otake collapsed forming a large debris avalanche and creating the horseshoe-shaped Sakuchi caldera, which extends to the eastern coast.
The island remained uninhabited for about 70 years after the 1813-14 eruption. Lava flows reached the eastern coast of the island in 1884. Only about 50 people live on the island.
Teo Blašković founded The Watchers in 2011 and edited it until 2026, covering seismic and volcanic activity, extreme weather, space weather and near-Earth objects. Articles on this page are his archive.
Published in the last 24 hours
- NASA built the Opportunity rover to last 90 days on Mars, and Martian winds helped keep it alive for nearly 15 years by blowing dust off its solar panels, until a planet-wide dust storm in 2018 blocked sunlight and silenced the rover Epicenter
- In the winter of 1811–12, earthquakes near New Madrid, Missouri, shook so hard that witnesses saw the Mississippi River flow backward, and the shaking left a brand-new lake in Tennessee Epicenter
- On 28 August 1859 a solar storm shocked telegraph operators and threw sparks on other lines, and on 2 September Boston to Portland clerks unhooked their batteries and kept sending for more than two hours on the aurora's current alone. Epicenter
- In 2019, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library hired hundreds of goats to eat 13 acres of brush around it; months later the Easy Fire surrounded the library, and the fire break the goats left behind slowed the flames before they reached the building Epicenter
It is clear that the activity around the ring of fire has increased
Follow dutchsinse on Youtube to learn more about prediction for volcanoes and earthquakes.