- Home
- /
- Global Volcanoes Database
- /
- Japan Volcanoes
- /
- Mount Unzen
Mount Unzen is one of Japan’s most active and dangerous volcanoes. It is a volcanic group of many overlapping stratovolcanoes located on the Island of Kyushu. When one of the several lava domes collapsed in 1792, a megatsunami was triggered, killing 14,524 people.
Location: | Island of Kyushu, Japan |
Coordinates: | 32.758209, 130.301525 |
Volcano Type: | Stratovolcano |
Mount Unzen's location
Current Alert Level: 1 (Potential for increased activity)
If you'd like to contribute to this page, please contact us
Mount Unzen's Eruptive History
1663 | Fugen-dake erupted, producing lava flows to 1km. The surrounding forest was destroyed. |
1792 | February - Eruptions and multiple lava flows at Fugen-dake's crater. The lava dome produced collapsed unexpectedly causing a 100 meter high tsunami and killing almost 15,000 people. |
1989-1991 | Seismic activity was recorded underneath Fugen-dake. In Nov 1990 a series of phreatic eruptions occurred. The following year, the volcano erupted three more times, intensifying through to May. A large lava dome was produced. In June 1991, 12,000 residents were evacuated. The lava dome eventually collapsed, triggering a massive pyroclastic flow which extended nearly 5km. This claimed the lives of a number of scientists, including volcanologists and adventurers Katia and Maurice Krafft. |
1992-1996 | Ongoing lave dome rebuilding and collapses, triggering pyroclastic flows. |
If you'd like to contribute to this page, please contact us
For monitoring of Mount Unzen, please refer to the Japan Meteorological Agency
If you'd like to contribute to this page, please contact us
- Home
- /
- Global Volcanoes Database
- /
- Japan Volcanoes
- /
- Mount Unzen