Driving Directions Japan
JAPAN, a constitutional monarchy, consists of a series of over 1,000 islands in East Asia. There are four principal, large islands running from north to south: Hokkaido, Honshu (the largest and known as the mainland), Shikoku, and Kyushu. All near one another, these four islands make up 98 percent of the total area of Japan.
In the north, the La Perouse Strait (Sea of Okhotsk) separates Hokkaido from the island of Sakhalin (Russia). In the northwest, Hokkaido is similarly separated from the Kuril Islands by the narrow Nemura Strait. (The Kuril Islands have been occupied by Russia since the end of the Second World War but are also claimed by Japan.)
In the southwest, the Western Channel of the Korea Strait separates the Japanese island of Tsushima from South Korea. In the far southwest, the southernmost of the Japanese Ryukyu Islands lie about 201 kilometers or 125 miles east of Taiwan. Simultaneously, the remainder is separated from China to the west by the broad expanse of the East China Sea.
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All parts of Japan lie within fairly easy reach of the sea, and the country has a very long coastline, which is highly indented in places. The dominant topographical feature is a series of high mountains, hills, and ridges interrupted by deeply cut valleys, which occupy about 80 percent of the total land area.
Lower land is found only in some of the larger river valleys and coastal plains and most intensely cultivated. The islands support a dense population, the great majority of whom live in crowded cities or towns.
The islands of Japan occur in a seismically active area of the Earth’s crust, and there are frequent earthquakes, two of which during this century, in 1923 and 1995 respectively, have had devastating effects and caused great loss of life.
Also, many of Japan’s mountains are extinct or still active volcanoes, and there are areas of obvious volcanic activity in the form of thermal springs and fissures emitting toxic gases. Among the active volcanoes are Asama-san and Bandai-san on Honshu and Sakurajima and Aso-san on Kyushu. Japan’s highest mountain, Fuji-san (3,775 meters or 12,388 feet), is in eastern Honshu and is a dormant volcano whose last eruption was in 1707.
Most valleys on the islands are occupied by fast-flowing rivers or streams, which are not navigable but ensure an abundant supply of water and potential for hydroelectric power development. There are also numerous lakes, particularly in the mountainous regions.
The most abundant trees in the north and on the mountain slopes are conifers, with the principal species being Japanese cedar (sugi), fir, and spruce. There are other trees in temperate regions and lower levels, such as beech, willow, poplar, alder, and holly. Further south on southern Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu, there are subtropical forests of various species, including bamboo.
Wildlife species include a large selection of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and birds such as Japanese deer and the Japanese macaque.
Apart from Hokkaido and the subtropical south, most of Japan has warm to hot summers and cool to cold winters with most rain falling in the summer, although precipitation occurs throughout the year. Temperatures become cooler farther north, and winters in Hokkaido are freezing with plenty of snow, and summers are fairly brief. In the south, winters are mild, and summers are moist and hot. Typhoons or tropical cyclones affect the Pacific coast from late August to October.
Only about 15 percent of land in Japan is suitable for cultivation. This is done intensively with extensive use of fertilizers and modern technology (such as the development of bioengineered crops) to obtain maximum crop yields.
Cultivation is mainly rice, but wheat, barley, sugar beet, potatoes and other vegetables, soya beans, and sweet potatoes are also grown. Fruits such as apples, cherries, peaches, oranges, and pears are grown, and some tea and tobacco cultivation occurs. The Japanese have also perfected the art of cultivating miniature trees (bonsai), and they are renowned for their cultivated flowers, including the lotus, chrysanthemum, tree peony, and azalea. Mulberry bushes are cultivated for the raising of silkworms. There is little spare land for raising livestock, although pigs, poultry, and cattle are reared in some parts of Japan.
Much of Japan is covered with coniferous woodland, which provides the basis for the considerable forestry industry. However, this is insufficient for domestic needs, and the country has to import timber from elsewhere.
Fish from the seas surrounding Japan have always formed the staple source of protein in the Japanese diet. Hence the country’s fishing industry is significant and well developed, with fish being caught both for domestic consumption and export. The fishing fleet is extensive, and while some boats operate far from home in international waters, others operate near the shore or within coastal waters.
Japan lacks mineral resources, although it does possess some small reserves of lead, copper, zinc, natural gas, and coal. Many raw materials must be imported. Heavy industries, such as iron and steel, shipbuilding, chemicals, and petrochemicals, accounted for almost three-quarters of Japan’s export revenue. Still, increasingly, Japan has had to rely on its manufacturing industry’s success, which employs about one-third of the workforce.
Leading manufacturing industries produce cars, televisions, videos, electronic equipment, cameras, watches, clocks, robots, and textiles. Japan’s financial markets have experienced some problems in recent years, which has introduced some uncertainty into what has hitherto been a very secure economy.
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Japan has four principal islands. From north to south, they are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyūshū. The four major islands are separated only by narrow straits and form a natural geographic entity. The nation also has more than three thousand smaller islands, including the Ryukyu archipelago, extending far to the southwest of the main islands.
The terrain on all of the major islands is primarily mountainous. The lowland areas that exist are mainly along the shore and are densely populated. The mountains remain largely covered by forest. Japan lies along the boundary between the Eurasian, North American, and Pacific Tectonic Plates. As a result, earthquakes are common throughout the islands, as are volcanoes.
Japan’s islands are so narrow that no point in the country lies more than 150 kilometers (93 miles) from sea waters. To the west, the Sea of Japan separates Japan from the Asian mainland. To the north lies the Sea of Okhotsk, and the East China Sea is to the south. All of these seas are extensions of the Pacific Ocean, which lies to the east of Japan. Another extension of the Pacific, the Philippine Sea, lies to the far southeast, along the Ryukyu archipelago coast. Warm and cold ocean currents blend in the waters surrounding Japan.
Undersea earthquakes often expose the Japanese coastline to dangerous tidal waves, known as tsunamis. Japan’s coral reefs have been severely damaged by sedimentation from construction and agricultural activity and by over-fishing. Environmentalists continue to protect the remaining intact reefs around southern islands such as Okinawa, where land development poses a threat.
Did you know about Japan?
Japan is very prone to earthquakes, with more than fifteen hundred of them recorded annually. Most of these are minor tremors, but the occasional major earthquake can result in thousands of deaths.
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