多火山多地震的國度

A Land of hot springs and attractive scenary

日本的國土約有四分之三為山體所覆蓋。本州中部地區被稱為“日本屋脊”，許多山脈的海拔超過3,000米。

About three-fourths of Japan’s land surface is mountainous. The Chubu Region of central Honshu is known as “the roof of Japan” and has many mountains which are more than 3,000 meters high.
位於山梨縣和靜岡縣的交界處的富士山，海拔3,776米，是日本海拔最高的山。山梨縣境內的北嶽，海拔3,192 米，是日本的第二大高峰。座落在長野縣和岐阜縣交界處的穗高嶽則是第三大高峰，海拔3,190米。

Japan’s highest mountain is Mt. Fuji (3,776 meters) on the border of Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures. Japan’s second- highest peak is Kitadake in Yamanashi Prefecture, at 3,192 meters, and its third-highest peak is Hotakadake at 3,190 meters, on the border between Nagano and Gifu prefectures.

由於地處環太平洋火山帶，日本從最北端到最南端有多個火山區—通常認為有7個。在所有的火山中，約有80座為活火山，其中包括伊豆大島上的三原山，長野縣和群馬縣交界處的淺間山，以及熊本縣境內的阿蘇山。儘管日本僅占世界陸地面積的1/400，但在全球840座左右的活火山中，日本幾乎占了1/10。富士山自1707年最後一次爆發以來一直處於休眠狀態，很難說在我們的有生之年不會看到它再度爆發。

As it is situated along the circum-Pacific volcanic belt, Japan has several volcanic regions—usually considered to number seven —from the far north to the far south. Of the total number of volcanoes, approximately 80 are active, including Mt. Mihara on Izu Oshima island, Mt. Asama on the border between Nagano and Gunma Prefectures, and Mt. Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture. Japan has almost 1/10 of the world’s approximately 840 active volcanoes, even though it has only about l/400 of the world’s land area. Mt. Fuji, which has been dormant since its last eruption in 1707, is by no means incapable of erupting again in our lifetimes.

儘管火山會因其大規模的噴發而造成巨大的危害，但同時也創造出大量的旅遊資源。例如，日光、箱根和伊豆半島等一系列旅遊勝地便以其溫泉和誘人的火山美景而聞名遐邇。

Though volcanoes can cause great harm through large eruptions, they also contribute an incalculable tourist resource. Touristic areas such as Nikko, Hakone, and the Izu Peninsula, for example, are famous for their hot springs and attractive scenery of volcanic mountains.

正如所有這些火山所驗證的那樣，日本群島下面的地殼極不穩定，蘊涵著極其豐富的能量。因此，日本是最易遭受地震災害的國家之一。日本每年發生有震感的地震1,000次之多。1995年1月的阪神大地震造成約6,000人死亡，40,000多人受傷，200,000餘人無家可歸。2004年10月發生在新潟縣的地震又使60人死於非命、4千7百餘人受傷。2011年3月，一場裡氏9級大地震發生在日本東北地區的太平洋三陸海域，隨之而來的海嘯襲卷了東北至關東大片沿海，有些地方的海嘯巨浪高達10米，死亡及失蹤人數近19,000人。

As all these volcanoes attest, the Earth’s crust beneath the Japanese archipelago is unstable and full of energy. Thus Japan is among those countries most likely to suffer from earthquakes. Every year there are approximately 1,000 earthquakes which are strong enough to be felt. In January 1995, the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake killed approximately 6,000 people, injured over 40,000, and left 200,000 homeless. An earthquake in Niigata Prefecture in October 2004 left over 60 people dead and more than 4,700 injured. In March 2011, a magnitude 9 earthquake was recorded off the coast of Sanriku (Tohoku) in the Pacific Ocean, and the ensuing tsunami, more than 10m high in places, hit the coast across a vast region from Tohoku to Kanto. The number of dead and missing after the earthquake and tsunami reached nearly 19,000.