Mount Zaō
Zaō Mountains | |
---|---|
蔵王連峰 | |
Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,841 m (6,040 ft) |
Coordinates | 38°08′28″N 140°26′35″E / 38.141°N 140.443°ECoordinates: 38°08′28″N 140°26′35″E / 38.141°N 140.443°E |
Geography | |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Complex volcano |
Last eruption | May 1940 |
The Zaō Mountains (蔵王連峰, Zaō Renpō), commonly called Mount Zaō, are a complex cluster of stratovolcanoes on the border between Yamagata Prefecture and Miyagi Prefecture in Japan. The central volcano of the group includes several lava domes and a tuff cone, Goshiki-dake, which contains a crater lake named "Okama" (御釜). Also known as the "Five Color Pond" (五色沼, goshiki numa) because it changes color depending on the weather, it lies in a crater formed by a volcanic eruption in the 1720s. The lake is 360 metres (1,200 ft) in diameter and 60 m (200 ft) deep, and is one of the main tourist attractions in the area.
One striking feature of Zaō's famous ski resorts is the "snow monsters"[citation needed] (樹氷, Juhyō) that appear in mid-winter. Strong wind over the nearby lake fling water droplets which freeze against the trees and their branches, until near-horizontal icicles begin to form. Falling snow settles on the ice formations, and the end result is a grotesque figure of a tree. The effect of a full forest of such trees gives visitors a ghostly impression. Zaō is one of the 100 famous mountains in Japan.
Rotaria rotatoria[1] and Pinnularia spp.[2] are found in the acidic Okama Lake.[3]
Relief Map
Okama Crater
Okama Crater
Snow monsters
See also[]
- List of mountains in Japan
- List of volcanoes in Japan
- Snow country (Japan)
- Zaō Ropeway
References[]
- ^ Deneke, Rainer (2000). "Review of rotifers and crustaceans in highly acidic environments of pH values ≤ 3". Hydrobiologia. 433 (1–3): 167–172. doi:10.1023/a:1004047510602. S2CID 25056334.
- ^ Negoro, K (1940). "A Pinnularia from Okama, an acidotrophic crater lake of volcano Zao". Jpn. J. Limnol. 9: 176–179. doi:10.3739/rikusui.9.176.
- ^ Anzai, T (1938). "Limnological observation of Okama, a crater lake of Volcano Zaō". Jpn. J. Limnol. 8 (3–4): 264–272. doi:10.3739/rikusui.8.3-4_264.
External links[]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zao Mountains. |
- "Zaozan [Zaosan]". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution.
- "English Travel information on Mt. Zao".(in English)
- Zaozan - Japan Meteorological Agency (in Japanese)
- "Zaozan: National catalogue of the active volcanoes in Japan" (PDF). - Japan Meteorological Agency
- Zao - Geological Survey of Japan (in Japanese)
- Zaozan - Smithsonian Institution: Global Volcanism Program
- Mountains of Yamagata Prefecture
- Mountains of Miyagi Prefecture
- Volcanoes of Honshū
- Active volcanoes
- Complex volcanoes
- Volcanic crater lakes
- Volcanoes of Yamagata Prefecture
- Volcanoes of Miyagi Prefecture
- Yamagata geography stubs
- Miyagi geography stubs