Fukutoku-Okanoba (福徳岡ノ場) is a submarine volcano that is part of the Volcano Islands in the Bonin Islands of Japan. It is located 5 km northeast of the island of South Iwo Jima.

Geography

The volcano is part of a larger elongated submarine volcano with two peaks and with a magma composition of trachyandesite. The volcano itself has erupted on multiple occasions with the last eruption before 2021 occurring during 2010. The first island to form when this volcano was discovered formed in 1904–5 and with a few more forming during the course of the 1900s.

History

The earliest recorded eruption of Fukutoku-Okanoba in 1904 formed an ephemeral island named Shin-Iwo-jima (New Sulfur Island). Other ephemeral islands have also formed, the most recent of which formed in 1986. In 2010, the Japanese coast guard spotted steam rising 1 km above the ocean and water discoloration of the surrounding area. In 2021, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) reported that a submarine eruption occurred at Fukutoku-Okanoba volcano at 6:20 a.m. local time on August 13. On August 16, it was confirmed that a new island had formed as a result of the latest eruption. In October 2021, large quantities of pumice pebbles from Fukutoku-Okanoba damaged fisheries, tourism, the environment, 11 ports in Okinawa and 19 ports in Kagoshima prefecture. Clean-up operations took 2–3 weeks.

Timeline

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