• Credit:

  NASA Earth Observatory image by Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data provided by the NASA EO-1 team. Caption by Robert Simmon.

Sakurajima Volcano in southern Japan erupted more than 400 times during 2009, and activity was increasing in early 2010. The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured this natural-color image of the erupting volcano on February 15, 2010.

Gray ash is visible in the plume that extends northeast (towards the lower-right) of the volcano. Ashfall is a regular occurence at the daikon and mandarin farms surrounding the volcano, as well as in the nearby cities of Kagoshima and Kirishima.

1. References

2. Mainichi Daily News. (2010, February 2.) Kagoshima’s ‘Rainbow Island’ erupts into sea of colors. Accessed February 17, 2010.
3. Photovolcanica. (2010, February.) Sakurajima Volcano. Accessed February 17, 2010.

1. Links

2. Sakurajima (Global Volcanism Program).
3. Sakurajima (Eruptions).
4. Sakurajima from the International Space Station (Soichi Noguchi).

Images & Animations

• Webmaster: Paul Przyborski
• NASA Official: Steven E. Platnick
• Database Updated: May 20, 2013