Mount Usu

Mount Usu (有珠山, Usu-zan^[3]) is an active stratovolcano in the Shikotsu-Tōya National Park, Hokkaido, Japan. It has erupted four times since 1900: in 1910 (which created Meiji-shinzan^[4]), 1944–45 (which created Shōwa-shinzan), August 7, 1977,^[5] and on March 31, 2000. To the north lies Lake Tōya. Mount Usu formed on the southern rim of the caldera containing the lake.

Mount Usu
有珠山 Usu-zan
Viewed from the SE.
Highest point
Elevation	733 m (2,405 ft)[1][2]
Listing	Mountains of Japan
Coordinates	42°32′37″N 140°50′21″E[1]
Geography
Mount Usu Hokkaidō, Japan
Parent range	Nasu Volcanic Zone
Topo map(s)	Geographical Survey Institute 25,000:1 壮瞥, 50,000:1 虻田
Geology
Mountain type	Stratovolcano
Rock types	Basalt Andesite Dacite Rhyolite [2]
Volcanic arc	Northeast Japan Arc
Last eruption	March 2000 to September 2001[2]

Mount Usu and Shōwa-shinzan are major tourist attractions in the Shikotsu-Tōya National Park. A rope-way on Mount Usu takes visitors to viewing platforms overlooking Shōwa-shinzan. The 1977 eruption is mentioned in passing in Alan Booth's travelogue, The Roads to Sata. The 2008 G8 Summit was held near Mount Usu at Lake Tōya.^[6]

Tōya caldera & Mount Usu (bottom) Mount Usu Tōya caldera & Usu volcano Mountaintop Crater East side

See also

• List of volcanoes in Japan