unilad homepage
  • News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
New island emerges from sea after eruptions from an underwater volcano

Home> News> World News

Published 14:45 6 Nov 2023 GMT

New island emerges from sea after eruptions from an underwater volcano

Officials confirmed the new island

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover

An underwater volcano erupting has led to the formation of a new island.

Officials confirmed on 1 November the islet - a small island - had emerged.

But where is this new bit of land, is it sticking around for long and can anyone visit it?

A new island has emerged.
NHK News

Advert

Well, the new islet is located about one kilometer off the coast of Iō-tō island - previously known as Iwo Jima island - located in the western Pacific, about 1,220 km south-southeast of Tokyo, Japan.

The emergence of the new small island was confirmed by the Maritime Self-Defence Force's air base - which is stationed on Iō-tō island - after it saw and heard an explosion, The Asahi Shimbun reports.

Prior to the volcano erupting and islet appearing, since 21 October, the Japan Meteorological Agency has detected volcanic tremors on Iō-tō island every few minutes and Iō-tō island has also been rising.

The volcano erupted and in its wake, an islet has formed near its crater.

A JMA official told The Asahi Shimbun: "It is possible that a large amount of rocks and stones ejected from the crater on the seafloor accumulated and created the islet."

And it's not the first time a new island has formed recently in Japan.

It's not the first time Japan has discovered a new island after a volcano eruption.
Getty Images/ Kurita KAKU/ Gamma-Rapho

In 2021, in similar fashion, another underwater volcano erupted 1,200km from Tokyo, creating a new crescent-shaped island.

However, just because the new islands have reared their heads, doesn't mean they're set to stay around for long, with other islands forming in a similar fashion in 1904, 1914 and 1986 all eventually disappearing as a result of erosion.

Although, a total of 7,000 new Japanese islands discovered earlier this year may be slightly harder to get rid of.

Japan was previously believed to have around 6,000 islands as per a mapping of the country conducted in 1987 by the Japan Coast Guard.

However, advanced mapping technology used by the Geospatial Information Authority (GIA) revealed this number was actually pretty inaccurate.

The new research revealed Japan didn't have 6,000 islands, but the country actually has over 14,000.

Basically, some of the land masses considered to be sandbanks opposed to islets or islands became included in the count.

If, like me, your mind went straight to the idea of jetting off to one of the islands for a holiday, then hold your horses, because only 400 of the 14,000 plus are actually inhabited.

But even still, a new island being born is pretty cool.

Featured Image Credit: Maritime Self-Defense Force / Gallo Images/"USGS/NASA Landsat data processed by Orbital Horizon"

Topics: World News, Science, News, Travel

Poppy Bilderbeck
Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a freelance journalist with words in Daily Express, Cosmopolitan UK, LADbible, UNILAD and Tyla. She is a former Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible.

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

5 hours ago
6 hours ago
  • Getty Stock Images
    5 hours ago

    New study shows how weight loss jabs can have surprising impact on anxiety and depression

    The jabs were originally licensed for diabetes, but are now commonly used in weight loss

    News
  • Getty Stock Image
    5 hours ago

    Scientists reveal which type of alcohol is most dangerous and one that is 'lowest health risk'

    Might be worth cutting back

    News
  • Brook Mitchell / AFP via Getty Images
    6 hours ago

    Dead body held in plane galley for 13 hours during flight as passengers describe 'foul smell'

    The British Airways flight was headed from Hong Kong to London, UK

    News
  • Gilbert Flores/Billboard via Getty Images
    6 hours ago

    Zara Larsson claims she lost $3 million brand deal over her abortion joke

    Zara Larsson has also pushed back against the backlash she received

    Celebrity
  • New update in $70 million search for missing MH370 flight 12 years after plane disappeared
  • Doctor reveals three serious health conditions you might inherit from your parents
  • How to protect yourself from 'rib cracking' winter illness as new virus variant emerges
  • Family of tourist speak out following her death after she was trapped 1,968ft down active volcano for days