Akita-Yakeyama

Geography & Climate

Akita-Yakeyama is located in Japan, within the Northeast Japan Volcanic Arc of the broader Northwestern Pacific Volcanic Regions. Situated at 39.96° N, 140.76° E in the Northern Hemisphere, the volcano lies within a temperate climate zone. With a summit elevation of 1,366 meters above sea level, Akita-Yakeyama is a moderately sized peak that remains accessible to hikers and researchers for much of the year. The volcanic landform is characterized as a composite, which describes the physical shape and structure of the volcanic edifice as observed from the surface.

Geological Context

Akita-Yakeyama sits in a subduction zone, where one tectonic plate dives beneath another, creating intense heat and pressure that generates magma. Subduction zones are responsible for many of the world's most explosive volcanoes and deadliest eruptions. For communities in Japan near Akita-Yakeyama, this tectonic setting means the volcano is capable of producing powerful explosive eruptions, pyroclastic flows, and lahars that can threaten populated areas within tens of kilometers of the summit. The dominant rock type is andesite / basaltic andesite, a dark, fine-grained volcanic rock that forms from rapidly cooling, low-viscosity lava. Basaltic eruptions tend to be less explosive and produce fluid lava flows that can travel long distances. While less immediately dangerous than explosive eruptions, basaltic lava flows can destroy structures and infrastructure in their path, and volcanic gases released during these eruptions can affect air quality over a wide area.

Eruption History Summary

Akita-Yakeyama has 17 recorded eruptions in the geological database, spanning from 3050 BCE to 1997 CE. The most powerful recorded event was an explosive event producing ash plumes up to several kilometers in 1929 CE, reaching VEI 2 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index. This level of eruptive frequency indicates a persistently active volcanic system that warrants ongoing monitoring. The most recent eruption in 1997 CE places this volcano within the modern era of volcanological observation.

Significance

With 17 recorded eruptions, Akita-Yakeyama has a substantial eruptive history that provides valuable data for understanding volcanic behavior and assessing future hazards in the Northwestern Pacific Volcanic Regions region. Given its recent activity, Akita-Yakeyama is closely monitored by geological survey organizations to provide early warning of future unrest.

GVP Reference Summary

One of several Japanese volcanoes named Yakeyama ("Burning Mountain"), Akita-Yakeyama is the most recently active of a group of coalescing edifices in NW Honshu immediately west of Hachimantai volcano. The main volcano, Yakeyama, contains a small lava dome in its 600-m-wide summit crater. Tsugamori to the east is a stratovolcano of roughly the same height and has a 2-km-wide crater breached to the NE. The flat-topped lava dome of Kuroshimori lies 4 km S of Yakedake. One of several thermal areas, the Tamagawa Spa at the western foot has strongly acidic and slightly radioactive water. The last magmatic eruption formed the Onigajo lava dome in the summit crater about 5000 years ago. There have been somewhat uncertain reported 19th-century eruptions and mild phreatic eruptions in the 20th century.

— Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program