Mount Fuji

My travels continued to lead me to another subduction zone. This time, it was were the Amurian Plate, the Okhotsk Plate, and the Sea Plate meet. These three plates meet at a junction to form the tallest mountain in Japan: Mount Fuji.

 Source: http://wikitravel.org/en/Mount_Fuji

Mount Fuji is an active stratovolcano, and was created in three different layers, each one taking thousands of years to form. It was formed by a subduction boundary, which I explained the process of in my last blog.

Fun Fact: other famous stratovolcanoes include Krakatoa and Mt. Vesuvius.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Geologycal_cross-section_of_Fuji.png

Even though Mount Fuji is a volcano, the residents of Japan have more to fear from earthquakes than an eruption. Fuji last erupted in 1707-1708, for 16 days, while the last earthquake was on March 15, 2011. However, this earthquake posed no threat to an eruption of the volcano, and might have been an aftershock.

Source: http://kylereed.com/Pictures/China/Japan/index.html

The volcano rises out of the flat land dramatically, and has an awe-inspiring symmetrical cone. Another absolutely beautiful landmark!

From the icon of Japan,

Carly