140724 Asahi-dake and Sugatami-no-ike Hokkaido Japan01bs3

is a mountain located near the town of

Higashikawa, Hokkaido is a town located in Kamikawa Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. As of September 2016, the town has an estimated population of 8,092, and a density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its ...

and the tallest mountain on the Japanese island of

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

. It is part of the

Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group The is a volcanic group of peaks arranged around the wide caldera in Hokkaidō, Japan. In the Ainu language it is known as ''Nutapukaushipe'' (which means "the mountain above the river"),

of the

Ishikari Mountains The is a range of volcanic mountains in central Hokkaidō, Japan. The mountain range is made up from the Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group and the Tomuraushi Volcanic Group. The volcanoes are part of the Kurile arc of the Ring of Fire The Rin ...

, located in the northern part of the

Daisetsuzan National Park , or Taisetsuzan is located in the mountainous center of the northern Geography of Japan, Japanese island of Hokkaido. At , Daisetsuzan is the largest national park in Japan, and is approximately the size of Kanagawa Prefecture. Daisetsuzan, mean ...

. Its native Ainu name is ''Kamui-mintara'', which means "the playground of the gods". The mountain is popular with hikers in the summer and can be easily reached from Asahidake Onsen via Asahidake Ropeway. During winter, the mountain is open for use by skiers and snowboarders. Sugatami Pond, directly below the peak, is famous for its reflection of the peaks, snow, and steam escaping from the volcanic vents.

History

Sulphur Sulfur (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundance of the chemical ...

was once mined in the

fumarolic A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or another rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...

areas. In 1989, the mountain was the site of the SOS incident, an unsolved case involving missing hikers.

Geology

Mount Asahi is an active

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

, in height that arose southwest of the Ohachi-Daira caldera. The

Japan Meteorological Agency The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA; ''気象庁, Kishō-chō'') is a division of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism dedicated to the Scientific, scientific observation and research of natural phenomena. Headquartered ...

gave the region rank C in volcanic activity. The volcano consists mainly of

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomina ...

and

dacite Dacite () is a volcanic rock formed by rapid solidification of lava that is high in silica and low in alkali metal oxides. It has a fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic texture and is intermediate in composition between andesite and rhyolite. ...

Holocene The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...

volcanic non-alkali

mafic A mafic mineral or rock is a silicate mineral or igneous rock rich in magnesium and iron. Most mafic minerals are dark in color, and common rock-forming mafic minerals include olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite. Common mafic rocks include ...

rock less than 18,000 years old. In addition to the main peak, there is a smaller volcano emerging from the southeast shoulder of the mountain, .

Eruptive history

Whilst there is no historical record of the eruptions of Mount Asahi, tephrochronology and radiocarbon dating have determined the following events: * 3200 BC ± 75 years, Asahi Soria deposit, corrected radiocarbon dating, explosive eruption * 2800 BC ± 100 years, As-A tephra, corrected radiocarbon dating, explosive eruption and phreatic explosions * 1450 BC ± 50 years, As-B tephra, uncorrected radiocarbon dating, explosive eruption and phreatic explosions * 500 BC ± 50 years, Ash-b tephra, tephrochonology, explosive eruption and phreatic explosions and debris avalanches * 1739, tephrochronology, explosive eruption and phreatic explosions with possible eruption of the central vent and radial good Mount Asahi currently exhibits steam activity in the form of fumaroles.

References

* * Watanabe, Teiji and Hauser, Markus.
ASAHI-DAKE: The heart of the Daisetsuzan National Park
'' Hiking map 1:25,000''.'' Alice Inc. (2017)

External links

*
Ropeway website
*
Official tourism information website
Stratovolcanoes of Japan Volcanoes of Hokkaido Mountains of Hokkaido Highest points of Japanese national parks {{Hokkaido-geo-stub

History

Geology

Eruptive history

See also

References

External links