THEY GROW UP so fast…
This little islet is only one day old but it has come into the world with quite a bang (sorry).
A volcano in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Japan erupted on Wednesday, throwing smoke and ash high into the air. When the smoke cleared, the tiny new island was spotted by observers in the area.
The islet appeared off the coast of Nishinoshima, a small, uninhabited island far south of Tokyo.
Japan’s coastguard said it is warning vessels to use caution in the area until the eruption cools off. ”Smoke is still rising from the volcanic island, and we issued a navigation warning to say that this island has emerged with ash falling in the area,” a spokesperson for Japan’s maritime agency said.
The islet is around 200 metres in diameter and it may or may not be around for good: the spokesperson said that erosion may cause the islet to disappear, but that if enough volcanic lava solidifies then it could become a new entry on the map.
Additional reporting by AFP
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