Skip to main content
← Back to map
⇄ Compare

Aira Caldera

Aira

Caldera · Japan · 1117m

A plume rises above the Minamidake crater on Sakurajima. Activity at Kitadake, the peak to the right in this view from the SE, ended about 4,850 years ago, after which eruptions took place at Minamidake. Sakurajima is one of Japan's most active volcanoes and is a post-caldera cone in the Aira caldera at the northern half of Kagoshima Bay. Frequent historical eruptions have deposited ash across the bay on Kagoshima, one of Kyushu's largest cities.
A plume rises above the Minamidake crater on Sakurajima. Activity at Kitadake, the peak to the right in this view from the SE, ended about 4,850 years ago, after which eruptions took place at Minamidake. Sakurajima is one of Japan's most active volcanoes and is a post-caldera cone in the Aira caldera at the northern half of Kagoshima Bay. Frequent historical eruptions have deposited ash across the bay on Kagoshima, one of Kyushu's largest cities. · Photo: Copyrighted photo by Shun Nakano (Japanese Quaternary Volcanoes database, RIODB, http://riodb02.ibase.aist.go.jp/strata/VOL_JP/EN/index.htm and Geol Surv Japan, AIST, http://www.gsj.jp/). · Wikimedia Commons
Type
Caldera
Country
Japan
Region
Western Pacific Volcanic Regions / Ryukyu Volcanic Arc
Elevation
1117m
Coordinates
31.577, 130.659
Last eruption
2026
Tectonic setting
Subduction zone / Continental crust (> 25 km)
Landform
Caldera
Major rock type
Andesite / Basaltic Andesite
Geological summary

The Aira caldera in the northern half of Kagoshima Bay contains the post-caldera Sakurajima volcano, one of Japan's most active. Eruption of the voluminous Ito pyroclastic flow accompanied formation of the 17 x 23 km caldera about 22,000 years ago. The smaller Wakamiko caldera was formed during the early Holocene in the NE corner of the caldera, along with several post-caldera cones. The construction of Sakurajima began about 13,000 years ago on the southern rim and built an island that was joined to the Osumi Peninsula during the major explosive and effusive eruption of 1914. Activity at the Kitadake summit cone ended about 4,850 years ago, after which eruptions took place at Minamidake. Frequent eruptions since the 8th century have deposited ash on the city of Kagoshima, located across Kagoshima Bay only 8 km from the summit. The largest recorded eruption took place during 1471-76.

From Wikipedia

Aira Caldera is a gigantic volcanic caldera located on the southern end of Kyushu, Japan. It is believed to have been formed about 30,000 years ago with a succession of pyroclastic surges. It is currently the place of residence to over 900,000 people. The shores of Aira Caldera have rare flora and fauna, including Japanese bay tree and Japanese black pine. The caldera contains the active Mount Sakurajima.

Wikipedia · CC BY-SA · Read full article →

Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
8050 BCE~7714 BCE · 2 eruptions · max VEI 66372 BCE~6037 BCE · 2 eruptions · max VEI 56037 BCE~5701 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?5701 BCE~5365 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?5030 BCE~4694 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?3352 BCE~3016 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 43016 BCE~2681 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 42345 BCE~2010 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?1339 BCE~1003 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?668 BCE~332 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?675~1010 · 6 eruptions · max VEI 41346~1681 · 6 eruptions · max VEI 51681~2017 · 29 eruptions · max VEI 48050 BCE5701 BCE3016 BCE668 BCE1681

Detailed timeline

  1. 2017VEI 2Observed
    2017-03-25 – 2026-03-23
    Minamidake summit crater
  2. 1955VEI 3Observed
    1955-10-13 – 2016-08-22
    Minami-dake and east flank (Showa crater)
  3. 1954VEI 1Geological estimate
    1954-11-16 – 1954-12-16
    Minami-dake
  4. 1950VEI 1Observed
    1950-06-29 – 1950-09-09
    Minami-dake
  5. 1948VEI 1Observed
    1948-07-27 – 1948-07-27
    East flank of Minami-dake (750 m)
  6. 1946VEI 2Observed
    1946-01 – 1946-11
    East flank of Minami-dake (750 m)
  7. 1942VEI 1Observed
    1942-07-16 – 1942-07-16
    East flank of Minami-dake (750 m)
  8. 1941VEI 2Observed
    1941-04-28 – 1941-08-26
    East flank of Minami-dake (750 m)
  9. 1940VEI 2Observed
    1940-04-24 – 1940-07-09
    Minami-dake and east flank (750 m)
  10. 1939VEI 2Observed
    1939-10-26 – 1939-11-12
    East flank of Minami-dake (750 m)
  11. 1938VEI 2Observed
    1938-02-25 – 1938-03-31
    Minami-dake
  12. 1935VEI 1Observed
    1935-09-20 – 1935-09-24
    Minami-dake
  13. 1914VEI 4Observed
    1914-01-12 – 1915-05
    West, east and SE flanks
  14. 1899VEI 1Geological estimate
    1899-09-24 – 1899-09-25
    Minami-dake
  15. 1860VEI 1Observed
    1860 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  16. 1799VEI 2Observed
    1799-03-27 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  17. 1797VEI 2Observed
    1797 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  18. 1794VEI 2Observed
    1794 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  19. 1792VEI 2Geological estimate
    1792 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  20. 1791VEI 2Observed
    1791-09-11 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  21. 1790VEI 2Observed
    1790-07-29 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  22. 1785VEI 2Observed
    1785-11-20 – Ongoing
  23. 1783VEI 3Observed
    1783-09-03 – Ongoing
  24. 1782VEI 2Observed
    1782-01-18 – Ongoing
    NE flank (offshore)
  25. 1779VEI 4Observed
    1779-11-08 – 1781-05
    NE flank, off NE coast, south flank
  26. 1756VEI 2Observed
    1756-09-09 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  27. 1749VEI 2Observed
    1749-09 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake summit, west flank?
  28. 1742VEI 2Observed
    1742-04-06 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  29. 1706VEI 2Observed
    1706-01 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  30. 1678VEI 2Observed
    1678-03-01 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  31. 1670VEI 2Geological estimate
    1670-06-01 – Ongoing
  32. 1642VEI 2Observed
    1642-04-06 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  33. 1478VEI 2Observed
    1478-09-23 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  34. 1471VEI 5Observed
    1471-11-03 – 1476-10-08
    NE and SW flanks, summit crater
  35. 1468VEI 2Observed
    1468 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  36. 778VEI 0Observed
    778 – Ongoing
  37. 766VEI 3Observed
    766-07-20 – Ongoing
  38. 764VEI 4Observed
    764-01 – Ongoing
    East flank (Nabe-yama)
  39. 716VEI 3Observed
    716 – 718
  40. 712VEI 3Geological estimate
    712 – Ongoing
  41. 708VEI 3Observed
    708 – Ongoing
  42. 650 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 650 – Ongoing
    Minami-dake
  43. 1050 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 1050 – Ongoing
  44. 2050 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 2050 – Ongoing
  45. 2900 BCEVEI 4Geological estimate
    BCE 2900 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  46. 3050 BCEVEI 4Geological estimate
    BCE 3050 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  47. 4800 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 4800 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  48. 5400 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 5400 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  49. 5950 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 5950 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  50. 6050 BCEVEI 5Geological estimate
    BCE 6050 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  51. 6350 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 6350 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  52. 7750 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 7750 – Ongoing
    Kita-dake
  53. 8050 BCE (±1000 yrs)VEI 6Geological estimate
    BCE 8050 – Ongoing
    Wakamiko Caldera

External links

⚠ For reference only. Not for emergency response.