Musu Point or Musu Dan
(; "Cape of the Dancing Water(s)") is a
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
n
headland
A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...
in the middle of the country's eastern coast along the
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...
. It forms the eastern side of
North Hamgyong's
Hwadae County
Hwadae () is a county in southern North Hamgyong province, North Korea, with an area of about 460 km2 and a population of approximately 70,000. It adjoins the Sea of Japan (East Sea of Korea) on the east and south. By land, it adjoins Kimch ...
and the northern point of
East Korea Bay.
Names
In the 19th century, Musu Point was variously known as
[.][.] or .
[ It was known in Korean as .][.] During the Japanese occupation of Korea
From 1910 to 1945, Korea was ruled by the Empire of Japan under the name ChÅsen (), the Japanese reading of "Joseon".
Japan first took Korea into its sphere of influence during the late 1800s. Both Korea (Joseon) and Japan had been under polic ...
, it was known as
Geography
Musu Point is a promontory consisting of high reddish cliffs projecting boldly south but tapering down to the sea at its apex,[.] The peak of the mountain forming the cape has been reckoned as .[
A rock high lies just south of the point. Another, considered to resemble two crouching dogs when approached from the north or south, lies just off the coast to its north.]
History
The Japanese passenger ship '' Koshun Maru'', operated by the OSK Line, was wrecked off the point in 1910.[.] Musu Dan Lighthouse, rising from near the cape's south extremity,[ The white structure is still active, but closed to the public.][ The American ]National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) is a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense whose primary mission is collecting, analyzing, and distributing geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) to support national se ...
notes, however, that "the existence and operation of all navigational aids should be considered unreliable on the east coast of North Korea".[.]
See also
* Musudan, its namesake North Korean missile
* Musudan Village, its namesake village and missile launch site
* List of lighthouses in North Korea
References
Citations
Bibliography
* .
* .
* .
* .
* .
External links
* , a topographical map of the area around Musu Point.
{{Authority control , additional=Q106465526
Headlands of North Korea
Landforms of North Hamgyong
Lighthouses in North Korea