Lake Towada Live Cam

Geological Genesis

Lake Towada occupies a natural caldera on the border between Aomori and Akita prefectures in northern Honshū. Formed approximately 10,000 years ago by a massive volcanic eruption of Mount Towada, the lake’s basin covers about 61.1 square kilometers at an elevation of 401 meters above sea level. The caldera collapse followed a Plinian eruption estimated to have ejected over 5 cubic kilometers of pyroclastic material. The resulting depression gradually filled with rainwater, snowmelt, and groundwater, creating one of Japan’s largest and deepest crater lakes, reaching a maximum depth of 327 meters. Beneath its clear blue surface lies a layered sedimentary profile: pumiceous ash deposits overlie compacted tephra, with a basal layer of andesitic lapilli indicating the final explosive phase of Towada volcanism.