Sakurajima volcano This photograph, taken in 2009, shows one of Japan’s most active volcanoes;

Sakurajima volcanoThis photograph, taken in 2009, shows one of Japan’s most active volcanoes; Sakurajima.The volcano sits within Kagoshima Bay, across the bay from the city of Kagoshima, with a population of half a million people. The residents of this city live with the volcano, which has basically been in a constant state of eruption since 1955, exploding every few hours.Sakurajima is a much more complex structure than what you see here. The bay itself, the waters to the north of the current peak, fill a circular depression that is actually a volcanic caldera, created 22,000 years ago when the predecessor to the current volcano massively erupted, emptying the magma chamber and allowing the peak to collapse.The current cone sits in a small portion of that caldera. It has undergone large eruptions in its history; most recently in 1914-1915.The volcano is a composite cone, made up of alternating layers of basaltic lava, more viscous lava, and ash that is produced in explosive eruptions like the one captured here at sunset.-JBBImage credit: Kimon Berlin https://www.flickr.com/photos/81943113@N00/4128149164Read more:http://www.volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=282080http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/sakurajima.html -- source link

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