Japanese Volcano Erupts

Shinmoedake had been quiet for a few weeks
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 13, 2011 1:01 PM CDT
Japanese Volcano Shinmoedake Erupts
Volcanic smoke billows from Mount Shinmoe in the Kirishimna range on Japan's southernmost main island of Kyushu, Friday, Feb. 4, 2011.   (AP Photo/Kyodo News)

It's an even better time to not be in Japan: Adding to the country's burgeoning humanitarian crisis after Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami, a volcano in the country's south erupted today. The Shinmoedake volcano spewed ash some two and a half miles into the air, its first activity in a few weeks. It's unknown whether the eruption was spurred by the 8.9 earthquake, notes the AP, but the country lies on the "Ring of Fire," where seismic and volcanic activity are frequent. Click for the latest on Japan's earthquake and aftermath. (More Japan stories.)

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