Two new volcanoes are showing signs of volcanic unrest after the M6.0 earthquake that hit the Ryukyu Islands, Japan on May 9, 2017.
The JMA has increased the eruption alert warning for Kirishimayama from 1 to 2 on May 9, 2017 and a volcanic ash advisory was issued for Suwanosejima on May 10, 2017.
The JMA has increased the eruption warning level of the Kirishimayama / Ebino Highland to level 2 on 9 May, 2017.
The resulting inspection report – published on 11.05.2017 – confirms the existence of new fumaroles accompanied by sediment and sand jets at the southwestern limit of the Iwozan crater.
A pit (a well) from which fumaroles has been ejected has formed since the last study on April 22.
The amount of ejected material – volcanic ash – found around the fumarole coincides perfectly with the estimated size of the new hole.
Meanwhile, a volcanic ash advisory was issued on May 10, 2017 at 14:17 by the VAAC Tokyo for Suwanosejima.
The Suwanosejima volcano is situated in the northern Ryukyu islands and has two summit craters. The Otake crater collapsed at the end of its eruption in 1813-14 and resulted in the horseshoe-shaped Sakuchi caldera, which had an intermittent strombolian activity between 1949 and 1996.
Were these volcanic eruptions triggered by the M6.0 earthquake in the Ryukyu islands on May 9, 2017?
