This is the geography page! Here you will learn about the geography of Japan.
Japans's island nation lies in the pacific coast of East Asia and consists of about 6,800 islands. Japan is on the edge of the pacific plate and is in the ring of fire. This causes about 1500 earthquakes each year. Japan is at 35 degrees north and 136 degrees east. The area of Japan in total is about 377,915 km². The land area (including all the islands) is 364,485 km² and the water area is 13,430 km². The capital city of Japan called Tokyo has a population of about 37,833,000 people. Japan overall has a population of about 126,867,000 people.
random fact: the japanese authorities constructed a fence around a volcano at mount Mihara to stop the trend of over 200 people committing suicide by jumping in.
Islands
The major islands of Japan are sometimes called the "home lands". Hokkaidō, Shikoku, Kyūshū, Honshū, Islets, Nansei islands and Nanpo islands are some of the major islands of Japan. 430 of all the islands in Japan are inhabited while the rest of the 1700 islands are uninhabited. The longest river in Japan is the Shinano river and the largest like is Lake Biwa. Popular Mountains:
Mount Fuji (highest point) Mount Ontake Mount Kita Mount Yari Mount Hotakadake Mount Senjō Mount Warsaw Mount Tsurugi Mount Tate Mount Norikura Mount Kaikoma Mount Shiomi (I can't name all the mountains cause there is a lot) Climate and weather
Weather in Japan still has the normal distinct seasons (Winter, Summer, Spring and Autumn). Winter in Japan is in December to February. Its mostly dry and sunny on the pacific side of Japan, snowy on the northern and central parts of Japan and a more mild winter in southern Japan. You would expect Spring showers in Spring but in Japan there isn't a lot of rain during Spring. Spring starts in March and ends around the end of May. Spring is nice and warm but not hot. Japans famous cherry blossoms are blooming in spring and there's a lot of festivals to enjoy if you plan to visit during Springtime. Like our Summer, Japans Summer begins in June and ends around August. During Summer Japan has a three to four week rainy season. This gives the farmers a great opportunity to plant their crops and rice. It becomes very hot and humid in the Summertime. Temperatures can rise up to over 100 degrees! Autumn in Japan has cooler weather and light breezes. There are a lot of sports and competitions held in autumn. So autumn is a great time to go to Japan! transportation |
Nature attractions
Mount Fuji is the highest point in Japan and is a breathtaking symmetrical volcano. Climbing mount Fuji is a popular thing to do during the summer. Mount Fuji is 3776 meters compared to Mount Baker which is 3286 meters. Mount Fuji is 490 meters taller. Takoasan is a natural recreation area that offers hiking opportunities, beautiful scenery and interesting temples. You can hike to the top of the mountain or take a chairlift or a cablecar up. Takoasan is convenient because its close to Tokyo. The Jogasaki coast is a section of the coastline along the eastern shore. It has a 10 kilometre hiking trail with cool rock formations and beautiful views. There are a lot of ski resorts in Japan. The slopes aren't all that steep but they're very cheap. If you time it right you can find a slope to yourself with a lot of fresh powder! The Tachiho gorge is a narrow gorge with a 17 meter tall waterfall and steep an sheer cliffs. Visitors and tourists can walk along the gorge path or rent boats to paddle down the rivers. Japan's largest cave and longest limestone cave is the Akiyoshido Cave. Only one kilometre of this nine kilometre cave is open to public. It has many different natural formations. There are underground waterfalls, streams and limestone pools. Cities |
Transportation in Japan is known to be more expensive then international transportation. In Japan, one of the main means of transportation is rail transport. Shinkansen also known as 'bullet trains' takes up a big portion of long distance travel in Japan. About 1141 trips are made daily on Shinkansen that operate at the maximum speed of 320 km and hour. Bullet trains are also known to be the most safe type of transport. 10 billion passengers have ridden the bullet train and only few have witnessed fatal crashes. Japan in 2012 had approximatley about 1215000 km of roads and 55000 km of road were of national highways. Road fatalities in Japan has been decreasing thanks to the stricter inforcement of drinking and driving laws. There are a lot of different airports in Japan. The main international airports are Kansai International airport, Narita international airport, Chūbu Centrair international Airport, New chitose Airport and Fukuako Airport.
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