Zaō Mountains | |
---|---|
蔵王連峰 | |
Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,841 m (6,040 ft) [1] [2] |
Listing | |
Coordinates | 38°08′38″N 140°26′24″E / 38.144°N 140.44°E [1] |
Geography | |
Country | Japan |
Island | Honshu |
Prefectures | Yamagata and Miyagi |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Complex volcano |
Last eruption | May 1940 [1] |
|
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". 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 are the "frost-covered trees" ( 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 Japanese Mountains.
Rotaria rotatoria [3] and Pinnularia spp. [4] are found in the acidic Okama Lake. [5]
Zaō Mountains | |
---|---|
蔵王連峰 | |
Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,841 m (6,040 ft) [1] [2] |
Listing | |
Coordinates | 38°08′38″N 140°26′24″E / 38.144°N 140.44°E [1] |
Geography | |
Country | Japan |
Island | Honshu |
Prefectures | Yamagata and Miyagi |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Complex volcano |
Last eruption | May 1940 [1] |
|
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". 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 are the "frost-covered trees" ( 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 Japanese Mountains.
Rotaria rotatoria [3] and Pinnularia spp. [4] are found in the acidic Okama Lake. [5]