TOKYO, July 4 (UPI) -- An underwater volcano has erupted off the coast of Japan, sending a column of steam rising into the air but causing no damage.
Japan's Meteorological Agency confirmed.the small-scale eruption after Maritime Self-Defense Forces reported a column of steam rising half a mile into the air about 3.7 miles north-northeast of Minami-Iwojima island, about 800 miles from central Tokyo, the Yomiuiri Shimbun reported Monday.
Sunday morning, aircraft dispatched by the navy and the Coast Guard found rock and mud rising to the surface. The water over a half-mile radius had turned orange-brown.
According to the Meteorological Agency, there are no seismographs near the site. A seismometer near Chichijima island, about 180 miles northeast of the volcano, did not register any earthquake.
The underwater volcano, known as Fukutokuokanoba, erupted in January 1986 and created a crescent-shaped island, which sank in March 1986. Volcanic activity changes the color of the water in the area every year.
