An undersea volcano has created a new Japanese island 620 miles south of Tokyo. The eruption took place 500 meters from the uninhabited Nishinoshima Island, one of the subtropical Bonin Islands, forming new land in an archipelago that runs along the Pacific tectonic plate boundary commonly called the “ring of fire.”
The Japanese coast guard issued a warning in the area on Wednesday after thick black smoke was ejected from the water alongside rapidly cooling lava. The coast guard and Japanese Meteorological Agency report the freshly formed land that molten rock created is currently about 660 feet in diameter.
via The Verge
