Japan’s Sakurajima volcano in southwest Kyushu erupted violently early on November 16, 2025, shooting a massive plume of volcanic ash and smoke up to 4,400 meters (about 14,400 feet) into the air.

The eruption, originating from the Minamidake crater, sent a large volume of ash into the atmosphere, leading to ashfall warnings across multiple surrounding prefectures including Kagoshima, Kumamoto, and Miyazaki.

The explosive activity began at around 12:57 a.m. JST, followed by another eruption at 2:28 a.m., producing a slightly smaller plume estimated at 3,700 meters.

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1116057 :4400

1116228 :3700 # #volcano # pic.twitter.com/2PIlJhr7IJ — (@mlit_osumi) November 17, 2025

This marked the first time in nearly 13 months that the volcano’s ash plume had reached above 4 kilometer

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