Torishima (Okinawa)
| Torishima | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Waters | East China Sea | |
| Archipelago | Okinawa Islands | |
| Geographical location | 26 ° 35 '40 " N , 126 ° 49' 51" E | |
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| length | 450 m | |
| width | 160 m | |
| surface | 4 ha | |
| Highest elevation | 19 m | |
Torishima ( Japanese 鳥島 ), also Kume-Torishima ( 久 米 鳥島 ), is an island in the Ryūkyū chain of islands .
geography
Torishima is 23 km northeast of Kume-jima and 37 km west of Aguni-jima , at the northeast end of a coral reef . The island is 4 hectares and rises up to 19 m above sea level.
Administratively, the island belongs to the municipality of Kumejima , but is actually subordinate to the 18th Wing of the US Air Force stationed in Kadena Air Base .
history
After the island was occupied by the USA in 1945, it and the surrounding area of 41 hectares has been used as the Tori Shima Range ( 鳥島 射 爆 撃 場 , Torishima shabakugekiba ) shooting test area since October 17, 1951 . Between December 1995 and January 1996, 1520 pieces of uranium ammunition were fired, of which 192 projectiles were recovered; the Japanese government was informed a year later. As a result, the United States removed all of its ammunition from Japanese territory.
In 2011, the Japanese Ministry of Defense announced that it was considering relocating the test site to Iōtorishima Island, 200 km away .
Individual evidence
- ↑ 沖 縄 県 島 し ょ 別 面積 一 覧 . Okinawa Prefecture, accessed November 13, 2013 (Japanese).
- ↑ a b 2 空軍 . (PDF) (6) FAC 6077 鳥島 射 爆 撃 場 (Tori Shima Range). In: 沖 縄 の 米 軍 基地 . Okinawa Prefecture, Mar. 2003, pp. 310-311 , accessed Dec. 1, 2012 (Japanese).
- ↑ US was tardy reporting radioactive bullets mishap. In: The Japan Times Online. February 10, 1997, accessed December 1, 2012 .
- ^ Uranium ammunition in the cross-hairs. In: The Japan Times Online. January 11, 2001, accessed December 1, 2012 .
- ^ Relocation of Tori Shima Range to Iwo-Tori-shima. In: Ryūkyū Shimpō. June 3, 2011, accessed December 1, 2012 .