List of extreme points of Japan

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The extreme points of Japan include the coordinates that are the farthest north, south, east and west in Japan, and the ones that are at the highest and the lowest elevations in the country. Japan's northernmost point is disputed, because Japan considers it to be on Iturup, an island de facto governed by Russia. The southernmost point is Okinotorishima; the westernmost is Tuishi [jp] near Yonaguni Island in Okinawa Prefecture, and the easternmost is Minami Torishima. The highest point in Japan is the summit of Mount Fuji at 3,776.24 m (12,389 ft). At 150 m (492 ft) below sea level, the bottom of Hachinohe mine is the country's lowest point. The surface of Hachirōgata is Japan's lowest natural point at 4 m (13 ft) below sea level. All extreme locations are uninhabited.

Extreme points of Japan marked on the map

Japan extends from 20° to 45° north latitude (Okinotorishima to Benten-jima) and from 122° to 153° east longitude (Yonaguni to Minami Torishima).[1] The coordinates used in this article are sourced from Google Earth, which makes use of the World Geodetic System (WGS) 84.

Extreme points

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Benten Island, northernmost point under effective Japanese control
A monument indicates the northernmost point of Japan at Cape Sōya on Hokkaido.
Tuishi, Japan's westernmost point off Yonaguni Island
Japan's easternmost point lies on Minami Torishima in the Pacific Ocean.
Okinotori Island, Japan's southernmost point
Hateruma Island, Japan's southernmost inhabited location

The northernmost point that Japan claims lies on the disputed island of Iturup. Japan's claim to the three southernmost islands of the Kuril Islands is disputed by Russia, which de facto controls the islands. This list provides the northernmost point as claimed by Japan as well as the northernmost undisputed point in Japan.

Overall

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Heading Location Prefecture Bordering entity Coordinates[a] Ref.
North
(disputed)
Cape Kamoiwakka Hokkaidō[b] Sea of Okhotsk 45°33′26″N 148°45′09″E / 45.55722°N 148.75250°E / 45.55722; 148.75250 (Cape Kamoiwakka (Northernmost - disputed)) [2]
North
(undisputed)
Benten-jima Hokkaidō La Pérouse Strait 45°31′38″N 141°55′06″E / 45.52722°N 141.91833°E / 45.52722; 141.91833 (Bentenjima (Northernmost - undisputed)) [3]
South Okinotorishima[c] Tokyo Philippine Sea 20°25′31″N 136°04′11″E / 20.42528°N 136.06972°E / 20.42528; 136.06972 (Okinotorishima (Southernmost))
East Minami Torishima Tokyo Pacific Ocean 24°16′59″N 153°59′11″E / 24.28306°N 153.98639°E / 24.28306; 153.98639 (Minami Torishima (Easternmost))
West Tuishi [jp] Okinawa East China Sea 24°27′5″N 122°55′57″E / 24.45139°N 122.93250°E / 24.45139; 122.93250 ((Westernmost))

Five main islands

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The five main islands of Japan are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Shikoku, Kyūshū and Okinawa.[4] All of these points are accessible to the public.

Heading Location Prefecture Bordering entity Coordinates[a] Ref
North Cape Sōya Hokkaidō La Pérouse Strait 45°31′22″N 141°56′11″E / 45.52278°N 141.93639°E / 45.52278; 141.93639 (Cape Sōya)
South Cape Arasaki [jp] Okinawa Miyako Strait 26°04′28″N 127°40′38″E / 26.07444°N 127.67722°E / 26.07444; 127.67722 (Cape Arasaki)
East Cape Nosappu Hokkaidō Pacific Ocean 43°23′06″N 145°49′03″E / 43.38500°N 145.81750°E / 43.38500; 145.81750 (Cape Nosappu)
West Naha Airport Okinawa East China Sea 26°12′22″N 127°37′50″E / 26.20611°N 127.63056°E / 26.20611; 127.63056 (Naha Airport)

Hokkaidō

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Honshū

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Shikoku

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Kyūshū

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Okinawa

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Extreme altitudes

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See also

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Notes

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  • ^a Coordinates obtained from Google Earth. Google Earth makes use of the WGS84 geodetic reference system.
  • ^b Although Japan claims this island as part of Hokkaido, this territory is disputed and Iturup is currently under Russian administration.
  • ^c The monument marking the southernmost point of Japan is located in Haterume, because of the remote location of Okinotorishima.

References

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  1. "GeoHack - Geography of Japan". GeoHack. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  2. "Google Maps (Cape Kamoiwakka)". Google. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
  3. "Google Maps (Bentenjima)". Google. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
  4. "離島とは(島の基礎知識) (what is a remote island?)". MLIT (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) (in Japanese). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. 22 August 2015. Archived from the original (website) on 2007-11-13. Retrieved 9 August 2019. MILT classification 6,852 islands(main islands: 5 islands, remote islands: 6,847 islands)
  5. 1 2 "Japan: Geography". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
  6. 施設見学ガイド 八戸鉱山株式会社 八戸石灰鉱山(八戸キャニオン). The Information Center for Energy and Environment Education (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-04-06.