Izu Ōshima

Izu Ōshima
Native name: <span class="nickname" ">伊豆大島
Geography
Location Izu Islands
Coordinates 34°44′0″N 139°24′0″E / 34.73333°N 139.40000°E / 34.73333; 139.40000Coordinates: 34°44′0″N 139°24′0″E / 34.73333°N 139.40000°E / 34.73333; 139.40000
Area 91.06 km2 (35.16 sq mi)
Coastline 52 km (32.3 mi)
Highest elevation 764 m (2,507 ft)
Administration
Japan
Demographics
Population 8,179 (as of October 2015)
Ōshima Town
大島町
Town

Flag

Location of Ōshima Town in Tokyo Metropolis
(Ōshima Subprefecture)
Country Japan
Region Kantō
Prefecture Tokyo Metropolis
(Ōshima Subprefecture)
District None
Government
 • Mayor Shizuo Fujii
Area
 • Total 91.06 km2 (35.16 sq mi)
Population (October 2015)
 • Total 8,179
 • Density 93.9/km2 (243/sq mi)
Symbols
 • Tree Camellia
 • Flower Camellia
Time zone Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City Hall Address 1-1-14, Motomachi, Ōshima-machi, Tōkyō-to
100-0101
Website www.town.oshima.tokyo.jp

Izu Ōshima (伊豆大島 Izu-ōshima) is a volcanic island in the Izu Islands.[1] The island is administered by the Tokyo Metropolitan government, Japan and lies about 100 km (62 mi) south of Tokyo, 22 km (14 mi) east of the Izu Peninsula and 36 km (22 mi) southwest of Bōsō Peninsula.

Ōshima Town (大島町 Ōshima-machi) serves as the local government of the island. The town (municipality) was formed in 1955 by the amalgamation of six separate villages (municipalities),[2] which were:

  1. Okata (岡田村) (north)
  2. Moto (元村) (west)
  3. Senzu (泉津村) (northeast)
  4. Nomashi (野増村) (west, south of Moto)
  5. Sashikiji (差木地村) (south, with Mabushi)
  6. Habuminato (波浮港村) (southeast)

Moto, which had been called Motomura (village) until then, became seat of the local government for the whole island as Motomachi (town).

Izu Ōshima, at 91.06 km² is the largest and closest of Tokyo's outlying islands, which also include the Ogasawara Islands. Izu Ōshima forms part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. Izu Ōshima is a stratovolcano.

Izu Ōshima is most famous for Mt. Mihara (764 meters), which last erupted in 1990. Izu Ōshima is also a popular site for tourists[3] from both Tokyo and Shizuoka due to its close proximity to the mainland.

There are a number of ferries which leave from Takeshiba Sanbashi Pier, near Hamamatsuchō, Tokyo. Ferries also leave from Atami in Shizuoka.

There are several flights per day from Ōshima Airport to Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) in Ōta, Hachijojima Airport in Hachijojima and Chōfu Airport in Chōfu (all four airports are in Tokyo).

The island is known for its Camellia Festival, Hanabi Festival, five black sand beaches, and several onsen.

History

The epicenter of the Great Kantō earthquake in 1923 was deep beneath Izu Ōshima Island in Sagami Bay. It devastated Tokyo, the port city of Yokohama, surrounding prefectures of Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka, and caused widespread damage throughout the Kantō region.[4]

On 16 October 2013, Typhoon Wipha passed over the island, dropping 80 cm (31 in) of rain in 24 hours and causing a landslide that killed 35 people.[5]

Climate

Izu Ōshima has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with warm summers and cool winters. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year, but is somewhat lower in winter than the rest of the year.

Climate data for Izu Ōshima
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 20.9
(69.6)		 20.0
(68)		 21.8
(71.2)		 25.5
(77.9)		 28.4
(83.1)		 32.3
(90.1)		 34.3
(93.7)		 34.1
(93.4)		 33.7
(92.7)		 29.7
(85.5)		 24.8
(76.6)		 23.1
(73.6)		 34.3
(93.7)
Average high °C (°F) 10.7
(51.3)		 11.2
(52.2)		 13.5
(56.3)		 18.0
(64.4)		 21.5
(70.7)		 24.0
(75.2)		 27.1
(80.8)		 29.2
(84.6)		 26.2
(79.2)		 21.5
(70.7)		 17.4
(63.3)		 13.3
(55.9)		 19.5
(67.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 7.3
(45.1)		 7.4
(45.3)		 9.9
(49.8)		 14.2
(57.6)		 17.9
(64.2)		 20.8
(69.4)		 24.1
(75.4)		 25.7
(78.3)		 23.0
(73.4)		 18.5
(65.3)		 14.2
(57.6)		 9.9
(49.8)		 16.1
(61)
Average low °C (°F) 3.7
(38.7)		 3.4
(38.1)		 6.2
(43.2)		 10.3
(50.5)		 14.5
(58.1)		 18.1
(64.6)		 21.8
(71.2)		 23.1
(73.6)		 20.5
(68.9)		 15.7
(60.3)		 11.0
(51.8)		 6.2
(43.2)		 12.9
(55.2)
Record low °C (°F) −2.8
(27)		 −4.0
(24.8)		 −1.9
(28.6)		 0.1
(32.2)		 6.4
(43.5)		 10.4
(50.7)		 12.4
(54.3)		 16.0
(60.8)		 12.4
(54.3)		 7.2
(45)		 3.0
(37.4)		 −3.0
(26.6)		 −4
(24.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 130.5
(5.138)		 146.9
(5.783)		 258.2
(10.165)		 238.7
(9.398)		 259.8
(10.228)		 337.8
(13.299)		 246.5
(9.705)		 231.0
(9.094)		 353.1
(13.902)		 329.0
(12.953)		 194.9
(7.673)		 100.8
(3.969)		 2,827.2
(111.307)
Average relative humidity (%) 64 65 69 75 79 84 87 86 83 77 73 67 75.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 149.4 130.9 149.0 148.3 167.5 110.0 127.2 170.3 115.0 117.5 125.6 145.3 1,656
Source #1: Japan Meteorological Agency (averages)
Source #2: Japan Meteorological Agency (records)

Fiction

The volcano featured prominently in The Return of Godzilla, as the location in which the Japanese government entombed Godzilla. Mt. Mihara appeared again in the direct sequel, Godzilla vs. Biollante, in which Godzilla was released when the volcano erupted.

Mt. Mihara and Izu Ōshima were also featured in the book Ring and the movie Ring as pivotal locations for the story.

In the Pokémon franchise, Cinnabar Island is based on Izu Ōshima.

Education

Ōshima Town operates public elementary and junior high schools.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education operates public high schools.

Ōshima High School is an agriculture school known for producing baseball players, and Ōshima International Maritime Academy is a marine biology school. Ōshima High School is attended primarily by children native to the island. Ōshima International Maritime Academy draws students from mainland Tokyo and neighboring Izu in order to participate in its marine biology program.

Gallery

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Ōshima," Japan Encyclopedia, p. 761.
  2. ↑ http://www.town.oshima.tokyo.jp/english/index.html
  3. ↑ Tokyo Islands "Oshima island"
  4. ↑ Hammer, Joshua. (2006). Yokohama Burning: the Deadly 1923 Earthquake and Fire that Helped Forge the Path to World War II, p. 278.
  5. ↑ Kyodo, Jiji. "Izu-Oshima Island holds memorial for mudslide victims of Typhoon Wipha". The Japan Times. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  6. ↑ http://www.osima-h.metro.tokyo.jp/
  7. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20090822061633/http://www.osimaminami-h.metro.tokyo.jp/
  8. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.osimaminami-h.metro.tokyo.jp/

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Izu Ōshima.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Izu Ōshima.
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