Volcanic activity has exposed WWII shipwrecks

Listen to this article

Volcanic activity in the Pacific has exposed the wrecks of rusting World War II ships sunk during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Japan’s Asahi TV reported that volcanic eruptions in Japan’s Ogasawara Islands have caused uplifts in the earth’s crust. As a result of the volcanic activity, a new island has appeared in the ocean. And off the coast of Iwo Jima Island, the sea has brought to the surface the wrecks of vessels sunk by the Americans during World War II.

According to reports carried by Asian media, the underwater volcano Fukutoku-Okanoba, located about 50 km south of Iwo Jima, erupted on August 13. And on October 17, scientists from Japan’s Comprehensive Volcano Research Centre of the National Institute of Earth Sciences and Disaster Prevention took a flight to observe the area and discovered that a new island had appeared on the sea surface, at the height of Fukuoka city.

During the flight, the researchers also observed and recorded World War II wrecks. These are vessels that the Americans sank during the fierce battles for Iwo Jima. The wrecks had rested on the ocean floor until now, but the piling up of the area has brought them back to the surface.

Institute director Setsuya Nakada also noted that Iwo Jima is the most active volcano of all 110 active volcanoes in Japan. He also stressed that he believes a large eruption of this volcano is very possible.

The wrecks exposed by the sea were probably vessels sunk during the construction of the US port. The base was intended to be a foothold for the US Navy to conduct raids into the Empire of Japan. From a strategic point of view, Iwo Jima was a key location during the fighting in the Pacific. The Japanese heavily fortified the island to reinforce their inner defensive belt. The capture of the island by the Americans is commemorated in a famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal, which shows soldiers planting a star-spangled banner on top of Mount Suribachi.