In the wake of an subaquatic eruption late last month , a raw volcanic island has popped up along the coast of Japan , inflate smoke and slowly growing in size .
The new island can be seen from the coast of Iōtō ( formerly Iwo Jima ) , part of the Ogasawara Islands over 1,000 kilometers ( 621 sea mile ) south of Tokyo in the Pacific Ocean .
It was created by the bang of an unnamed undersea vent that began erupting on October 21 . By October 30 , the magma had hand the sea surface and became piling up in the form of a new island , The Japan Timesreports .
“ In an earlier stage , a erect jet of shameful color , debris — which is a solidify magma — and weewee jet upward . Since Nov. 3 , the irruption take off changing and the emission of volcanic ash go on explosively , ” Setsuya Nakada , a professor emeritus of volcanology at the University of Tokyo , told the newspaper publisher .
“ The field that do n’t have lava could be scrape aside . So if more and more lava comes out , and compensate the expanse , I think that part will remain constantly . "
newfangled islands on a regular basis sort in the world ’s sea as a result of volcanic bodily function from beneath the wave . submersed volcano spew out liquefied textile , which is rapidly cooled by saltwater , solidifying and forming a solid cumulus that can poke above the sea open .
For case , another new island sprung upin Japan back in August 2021 thanks to the irruption of the undersea vent Fukutoku - Okanoba , once again airless to the island of Iōtō .
Japan is a hotbed of volcanic activity as it ’s fix in a part of the earth know as theRing of Fire , which carve the Pacific Ocean for around 40,000 km ( 24,900 miles ) and hold two - thirds of the volcanoes active since the last Ice Age . Many independent plate bound encounter here , causing a volatile organization that render about 90 percent of the world ’s earthquakes to occur there and around one-half of Earth ’s volcanic eruptions since record began .
This is one of the geological and geographical factors that explain why Japan has so many islands . Prior to 2023 , the official count was thought to be 6,852 . However , a recount to begin with this year revealed that it ’s in all probability more thandouble that figure , with approximately 14,125 islands in sum .
Perhaps they better make that 14,126 now .
