Mount Ōkueyama (大崩山), also known as Mount Ōkue, is a volcanic mountain on the Japanese island of Kyushu. Part of an ancient volcanic formation known as the Okueyama Volcano-plutonic Complex,[1] Mount Ōkueyama (and possibly several nearby volcanoes)[2] experienced a massive eruption ~13.7 million years before present (13.7 Ma); it has been postulated that this eruption measured 8.0 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index, making the Ōkueyama eruption larger than any eruption in recorded history.[2] The mountain is now considered to be extinct.[1]
Mount Ōkueyama | |
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Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,643 m (5,390 ft) |
Coordinates | 32°44′16″N 131°30′47″E |
Geography | |
Location | Kyushu, Japan |
Geology | |
Mountain type | stratovolcano |
Last eruption | ~13.7 Ma |
In 1990, the area around the mountain was designated a Forest Ecosystem Reserve,[3] and In 2017 Mount Ōkueyama was declared part of a UNESCO biosphere reserve, the Sobo, Katamuki and Okue Biosphere Reserve.[4][5]
The area is managed by the Forestry Agency of Japan.[3]