ID :
158665
Tue, 02/01/2011 - 16:52
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/158665
The shortlink copeid
Volcano in southwestern Japan erupts for 4th time since last week
KAGOSHIMA, Japan, Feb. 1 Kyodo - An explosive eruption occurred on a 1,421-meter-high volcano in southwestern Japan on Tuesday morning, the fourth eruption since last Wednesday, spewing columns of smoke to a height of around 2,000 meters.
Shinmoe Peak in the Kirishima volcano group on the border of Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures erupted at around 7:54 a.m., prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to warn that volcanic rock could fall on areas within 4 kilometers of the crater rather than within 3 km as previously alerted.
The latest eruption at Shinmoe Peak occurred at the tip of a lava dome in the crater, the Kagoshima Local Meteorological Observatory said, adding that while the dome has expanded to around 600 meters in diameter, its height has fallen slightly.
Over 100 houses and other buildings in Kirishima, Kagoshima Prefecture, have sustained broken windows due to air pressure disturbance triggered by the eruptions with one woman sustaining slight injuries, city officials said.
An impact crater about 6 meters in diameter and 2.5 meters deep was found around 3 km southeast of the volcanic crater, as well as another 7 meters in diameter, apparently caused by falling rock, local officials said.
The local observatory said its infrasonic meter located around 3 km to the southwest of the volcanic crater had recorded 458 pascals of air pressure disturbance from Tuesday's eruption, while the Miyazaki observatory said it had confirmed a level that could be felt by people.
Air pressure disturbance of more than 100 pascals would destroy windows, weather officials said.
Shinmoe Peak continued to erupt in the afternoon, with the smoke above it reaching an altitude of 3,000 meters at around 3:30 p.m.
Kirishima city urged around 20 families living near Shinmoe Peak to evacuate, of which four people from three families evacuated by Tuesday evening.
The Kagoshima observatory said all four explosive eruptions seen at the peak so far were the domestically common Vulcanian type, marked by increased volcanic gas pressure within the vent. The observatory also said there could be further explosive eruptions.
Meanwhile, the state-run National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology said an estimated 70 million tons of volcanic material, such as ash, spewed from Shinmoe Peak on Wednesday and Thursday last week, nine times larger in volume than the amount spewed in its 1959 eruption.
Shinmoe Peak in the Kirishima volcano group on the border of Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures erupted at around 7:54 a.m., prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to warn that volcanic rock could fall on areas within 4 kilometers of the crater rather than within 3 km as previously alerted.
The latest eruption at Shinmoe Peak occurred at the tip of a lava dome in the crater, the Kagoshima Local Meteorological Observatory said, adding that while the dome has expanded to around 600 meters in diameter, its height has fallen slightly.
Over 100 houses and other buildings in Kirishima, Kagoshima Prefecture, have sustained broken windows due to air pressure disturbance triggered by the eruptions with one woman sustaining slight injuries, city officials said.
An impact crater about 6 meters in diameter and 2.5 meters deep was found around 3 km southeast of the volcanic crater, as well as another 7 meters in diameter, apparently caused by falling rock, local officials said.
The local observatory said its infrasonic meter located around 3 km to the southwest of the volcanic crater had recorded 458 pascals of air pressure disturbance from Tuesday's eruption, while the Miyazaki observatory said it had confirmed a level that could be felt by people.
Air pressure disturbance of more than 100 pascals would destroy windows, weather officials said.
Shinmoe Peak continued to erupt in the afternoon, with the smoke above it reaching an altitude of 3,000 meters at around 3:30 p.m.
Kirishima city urged around 20 families living near Shinmoe Peak to evacuate, of which four people from three families evacuated by Tuesday evening.
The Kagoshima observatory said all four explosive eruptions seen at the peak so far were the domestically common Vulcanian type, marked by increased volcanic gas pressure within the vent. The observatory also said there could be further explosive eruptions.
Meanwhile, the state-run National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology said an estimated 70 million tons of volcanic material, such as ash, spewed from Shinmoe Peak on Wednesday and Thursday last week, nine times larger in volume than the amount spewed in its 1959 eruption.
