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Native name: Japanese:諏訪之瀬島 | |
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| Geography | |
| Location | East China Sea |
| Coordinates | 29°38′N129°43′E / 29.633°N 129.717°E /29.633; 129.717 |
| Archipelago | Tokara Islands |
| Area | 27.66 km2 (10.68 sq mi) |
| Coastline | 27.15 km (16.87 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 796 m (2612 ft) |
| Highest point | Otake |
| Administration | |
Japan | |
| Kagoshima Prefecture | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 84 (2025) |
| Pop. density | 3.03/km2 (7.85/sq mi) |
| Ethnic groups | Ryukyuan,Japanese |
Suwanose Jima (諏訪之瀬島) is one of theTokara Islands, belonging toKagoshima Prefecture. The island covers 27.66 km² in area and has a population of 84 people.[1] Although the island has an airport, there are no regularly scheduled services, and access is normally by ferry to the city of Kagoshima on the mainland. The island is about nine hours by boat from the mainland. The islanders are dependent mainly on agriculture, fishing and seasonal tourism.
Suwanosejima is the second largest of the islands in the Tokara archipelago, and is located 21 kilometres (11 nmi) southwest fromNakanoshima. The highest elevation is Otake (御岳), with a height of 796 metres (2,612 ft) above sea level, which is the exposed cone of an activestratovolcano arising from the ocean floor.
The local climate is classified as subtropical, with a rainy season from May through September.
Suwanosejima has been populated sporadically (depending on volcanic activity), for several thousand years. The island was once part of theRyukyu Kingdom. During theEdo period, Suwanosejima was part ofSatsuma Domain and was administered as part ofKawanabe District.
In 1896, the island was transferred to the administrative control ofŌshima District, Kagoshima, and from 1911 was administered as part of the village ofToshima, Kagoshima. From 1946-1952, the island was administered by theUnited States as part of the Provisional Government of Northern Ryukyu Islands.
It is the home ofBuzoku, also called the Banyan Ashram, acommune founded in the 1960s bySansei Yamao,Nanao Sakaki, and others, and home for a while to American poet and scholarGary Snyder.
Suwanosejima was abandoned after a great 15th century eruption, until it was resettled by people of theAmami Islands in the 19th century.[2] After large-scalePlinian eruptions from 1813-1814, which ejected a large amount ofscoria and saw lava flows to the west coast, the island was abandoned by its inhabitants again until 1883.Further eruptions occurred in 1877, 1914-1915, 1921, 1922-1925, 1938, 1940, 1949, 1950-1954, 1957-1999, 2001-2002 and 2004-present. One of the most active volcanic islands in the world, Suwanosejima recorded 156 volcanic eruptions in 2008 and 216 in 2009. Since October 2004, eruptions have been continuous.
On 14 January 2024, when Mount Otake erupted, expelling rocks more than a kilometer from its crater.[3]
Explosive activity was reported on 27 September 2025. The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) in Tokyo reported an ash plume rose up to 9,000 feet moving southeast at 5 kts.[4]
