A distant, exotic country, located on the other side of the globe. An island suspended between history and modernity, where an ancient past, made up of rituals, temples and sanctuaries, coexists with seemingly unbridled progress. In Japan, the sacred and intimate dimension of life merges with the high-speed trains that connect the country, with the colorful sparkle of the neon signs that light up the streets of the big cities, with the black and white of the manga that enliven every genre of fiction from this corner of Asia.
Traveling between the futuristic scenarios of Tokyo and the more traditional landscapes of Kyoto, it is impossible not to come across one of the numerous volcanoes that dot the country, which has made one of its three "sacred mountains", Mount Fuji, a national symbol.
Jacopo Taddeucci is an INGV researcher who, over the years, has studied some Japanese volcanoes for a long time, becoming passionate not only about the scientific aspects of this segment of the Far East, but also about the very ancient culture of an extremely fascinating people. We met him to let us guide us on this journey to discover the volcanoes and traditions of the land of the rising sun.
Jacopo, what kind of structure does Japan have from a volcanological point of view?
Japan is part of the so-called "ring of fire", the belt of fire dotted with volcanoes that surrounds the Pacific Ocean. It has a geo-dynamic structure dominated by the phenomenon of subduction, i.e. by the sliding of the Pacific plates under the country: for this reason it is a geo-dynamically very active territory.
In fact, along the ring of fire, i.e. along this chain of subductions which goes from the southern tip of South America to New Zealand, passing through the entire American continent, the Bering Strait and Indonesia, numerous phenomena of also considerable entities concerning both earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Phenomena that widely affect, therefore, even Japan itself.
What are the major volcanoes in Japan?
Well, this is actually a very difficult question, there are so many! Suffice it to say that only those potentially active are well over 100. Trying to make a purely statistical comparison with Italy, which, by extension, has a territory quite comparable to the Japanese one, Japan has about ten times as many volcanoes as our country with a very high concentration.
Wanting to mention a few I would say the Unzen, which was a particularly active volcano at the end of the last century, unfortunately remembered for the various victims it made, even among volcanologists, during these eruptions which lasted for a long time; but also Sakurajima, the volcano on which I had the opportunity to work, Usu, Aso… The most famous of all, of course, is Mount Fuji, which with its 3.776 meters is the highest mountain in the Japan as well as the symbol of the country.
Do you have any particular memories you would like to share about your experience there?
Yes, of course, I have several. As I said, I've been to Sakurajima twice for different types of research: I'm very fond of it and I must say that I really have many good memories. From the most impressive ones in Kagoshima City, the city of about 600.000 inhabitants located on the slopes of the volcano, where, long before the health emergency from Covid-19, everyone often turns around with their nose and mouth covered by masks to protect themselves from the volcanic ash that covers the streets. Sakurajima is in fact a volcano which, for several years now, has been producing so-called Vulcan explosions, eruptions of very short duration but at the same time very intense and frequent, which produce ash clouds even several kilometers high.
Speaking of anecdotes, think that sometimes before arriving we wondered where we could sample some volcanic ash… Well, once we arrived we always realized that our worries were really useless! In front of the houses we even found bags of this ash because every local citizen is regularly required to sweep it off their roof and garden while waiting for a special truck to pass by for the correct collection and disposal activities!
Furthermore, on Sakurajima there are many defense tools both active and passive against the volcano. Among these, I remember, for example, the bunkers scattered along the road with signs to signal that, in the event of major eruptions, those structures are built specifically to allow shelter for those who may be outdoors at the time of the event.
A beautiful memory I have of the time spent on Sakurajima concerns the breaks we took from field work: completely covered in ash, we went to a gentleman who had a very small kiosk inside a caravan and who to make every single coffee it took about ten minutes: he weighed the beans one by one, ground them by hand, heated the water on a small electric burner and finally poured it slowly over the mixture. More than a break from work, it had become a real ritual.
What level of awareness is there among the locals of volcanic risk?
Well, the level of awareness of volcanic risk in Japan is certainly greater than what we perceive here in Italy, if only, as I said before, for the enormous quantity of volcanic buildings that dot the country and which, therefore, favor - even indirectly - a greater familiarity with the phenomenon.
To explain this familiarity a little, let's think of the fact that, in addition to the greater number of eruptions that the population experiences every year (proportional, of course, to the greater number of volcanoes present in the area), one of the most consolidated traditions in Japan is the thermal one: they have these onsen, or "thermal springs", scattered almost in every corner of every city which are fed, precisely, by the lively geothermal activity linked to the magma that resides in the depths.
Furthermore, from the point of view of those who "make it" science, it must be said that in Japan they are very dedicated to dissemination: there is a lot of risk communication, also in this case both active and passive, with many information signs that are posted both in the city and on the paths that climb the volcanoes. Furthermore, the culture of prevention ensures that the population is regularly engaged in drills and that attention to natural hazards is always kept high and constant.
But, in parallel, there is also a lot of so-called "volcanic" tourism: the bookshops and small shops are well stocked both with brochures and volumes that describe the volcanoes from a scientific and informative point of view, and also with more amusing gadgets and souvenirs they are now part of Japanese culture itself.
In your opinion, are there any differences between the "Western" and the "Eastern" scientific approach to volcanological research?
In my opinion not. Scientific culture and the scientific tool are the same on a global level, well established by Galileo and Newton onwards: experiments must be carried out, the data must be robust and the theories refutable, and so on. Therefore, I would say that the principles are the same in almost every corner of the world. Even the approach, although the cultures are extremely different, is always that of the scientific method.
And speaking of cultural differences, what, on a personal level, strikes you most about Japanese culture?
Well I've always been very fascinated by Japanese culture and I must say that one of the things I like most every time I go there is the fact that an extremely exotic place appears in front of me. A place that, although it may appear similar, Westernized at times, is actually incredibly exotic in all its aspects: from the excesses of big cities, to the still deeply rooted rural culture, to social behaviour. It always fascinates me to go and find this great diversity alongside a deep sense of physical security which is precisely what allows you to enjoy the differences: it is one of those places where I have never felt in danger, where I have always found great help in case of difficulty although sometimes it was even difficult to communicate because of the language. Refusal, for example, is something socially very inappropriate for a Japanese: so it happens that sometimes they find it difficult to say "No" even when they have not fully understood what is being asked of them or are not completely sure.
Is INGV involved in any scientific collaboration agreements with Japanese research institutions?
Absolutely yes, we have many collaborations in place. I personally oversaw the drafting of a memorandum of understanding between INGV and the Geological Survey of Japan, which includes various Institutes involved in research, monitoring and mapping of the territory. But there are also many other colleagues who collaborate closely or who are visitor scientists in Japanese institutions, as well as many Japanese colleagues who have been our guests here in Italy over the years. There is a strong exchange between our two countries, certainly.
Has the Covid-19 emergency had an impact on your life as a researcher?
I must say that this pandemic has affected my work a lot, yes: conferences and conventions are an extremely important tool for professional growth for us, and in my opinion only the online part is not enough. Much of professional growth comes from small talk and exchanges that are difficult to plan and frame within a single conference call. I am thinking, for example, of the colleague who stops you in the corridor after a presentation, or during a lunch or a break… These are all fundamental moments that have naturally disappeared in this period. But I am also thinking of the more properly logistical part, of the experiments that many of us had planned to carry out in foreign laboratories…
With the reopenings that have affected all of Europe in recent months, I have started traveling a little again for work: I was in Germany, a few weeks ago we went to Stromboli with foreign colleagues, but only because they were environments that it was possible check. There were just a few people, distanced and wearing masks, outdoors... In a conference this would not be possible, and in fact even current events tell us that since the Presidency of the Council there has once again been a drastic tightening in this sense.
But science clearly doesn't stop: with many colleagues we have many activities planned that we hope will only be postponed until better times.