{"id":27,"date":"2025-01-10T13:34:41","date_gmt":"2025-01-10T04:34:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/earthtime-journey.geopark.jp\/en\/?page_id=27"},"modified":"2025-11-04T13:14:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T04:14:30","slug":"chapter1","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/earthtime-journey.geopark.jp\/en\/chapter1\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 1: Stories of the past that shape the present"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\t\tChapter 1:
Stories of the past<\/i> that shape the present<\/i>\n\t<\/h2>\n

\n\t\tCONNECT\n\t<\/h2>\n\t

The scenery we see every day and the food we eat every day – they are all linked deeply with the history of our planet, which spans hundreds of millions of years.<\/p>\n

Let’s unravel how the present<\/i> in front of us connects<\/i> with the past<\/i> Earth.<\/p>\n

\n\t\tCONNECT with people’s lives\n\t<\/h3>\n\t

Japan is one of the most volcanic island countries in the world. Volcanic eruptions cause disasters that threaten our lives, but they also support our lives. On Sakurajima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture), lava and volcanic ash from volcanic eruptions create well-drained slopes that nurture local products such as Sakurajima radish and Sakurajima mandarin oranges.<\/p>\n

When volcanic activity occurs on a large scale, the land above the volcano may cave in. The depression created is called a caldera. Lake Toya (Hokkaido Prefecture) and Lake Ashi (Kanagawa Prefecture) are caldera lakes filled with water and are used for tourism and as hot spring resorts.<\/p>\n

One of the landforms created by earthquakes are marine terraces. In Muroto (Kochi Prefecture), the land rises about two meters per thousand years due to Nankai earthquakes that occur every few hundred years. Thanks to sunlight and drainage, the marine terraces are used for agriculture, such as growing sweet potatoes and eggplants.<\/p>\n

The past<\/i> activities of the Earth have given birth to the present<\/i> landforms, and humans make use of them in a variety of ways.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Sakurajima\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tSakurajima Radish is grown in the volcanic ash soil of Sakurajima Island (Sakurajima-Kinkowan Geopark \/ Kagoshima Prefecture). The largest ones grow up to 30 kg in weight.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Higashi\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tHigashi Onsen, on Iojima Island (Mishima Village Kikai Caldera Geopark \/ Kagoshima Prefecture). The Kikai Caldera, which erupted 7,300 years ago, lies at the bottom of the sea.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Lake\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tLake Toya (Toya-Usu UNESCO Global Geopark \/ Hokkaido Prefecture) is one of the caldera lakes. Nakajima Island in the center is a central cone, and the lake is surrounded by a somma(a volcanic rim).\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Marine\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tMarine terraces, spreading over Cape Muroto (Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark \/ Kochi Prefecture). The amount of uplift is one of the highest in the world for marine terraces of the same period.\n

\n\t\tCONNECT with creatures\n\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"The\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tThe 400-year-old fig tree Ficus wightiana <\/i> in the Shimabara Peninsula (Unzen Volcanic Area UNESCO Global Geopark \/ Nagasaki Prefecture). It is a subtropical tree, with its trunk growing like a tunnel from roots entangled in stone walls.\n\t

Living creatures cannot live just anywhere. Each creature has its own strengths and weaknesses, and they live according to the surrounding environment, including the shape of the land. Differences in rocks result in differences in soil, which are also deeply related to plant growth.<\/p>\n

For example, in high mountains such as the Southern Alps (Nagano Prefecture) and Mt. Hakusan (Ishikawa Prefecture), enormous amounts of snow and powerful winds create a harsh environment. Only a limited number of animals and plants can survive in this environment. Forests rarely form on the high mountains, and there are many barren lands devoid of even grass.<\/p>\n

Beech trees, also known as the queen of forests<\/i>, are widely found in northeastern Japan such as forests in the areas of Mt. Ch\u014dkai (Akita and Yamagata Prefectures) and Mt. Kurikoma (Miyagi, Akita, and Iwate Prefectures). Beech forests are found in high snowfall areas in the low mountains, below the alpine zone, providing shelter from the snow and wind for many plants and animals.<\/p>\n

Earth’s activities in the past<\/i> have created various landforms and climates, and the creatures of the present<\/i> have chosen different habitats accordingly.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Rock\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tRock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta<\/i>) in the Southern Alps (Minami-Alps (MTL Area) Geopark \/ Nagano Prefecture). Isolated in alpine zones, it is an endangered species due to its declining population.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Beech\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tBeech forest on Mt. Kurikoma (Mt. Kurikoma Area Geopark \/ Miyagi Prefecture). In spring, snow begins to melt at the base of the beech trees.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"<i>Hypericum\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tHypericum nakaii<\/i> subsp. nakaii<\/i> is an endemic species of St. John’s wort on Mt. Apoi (Mt. Apoi UNESCO Global Geopark \/ Hokkaido Prefecture). It grows only on peridotite rock areas and produces yellow flowers in July and August.\n

\n\t\tCONNECT with culture\n\t<\/h3>\n\t

Our festivals, rituals, and industries are deeply linked with the activities of the Earth.<\/p>\n

In Japan, there are still many beliefs and cultural practices related to nature, such as calming volcanic eruptions and praying for rain. Despite its small size, Japan has many high mountains and steep rivers. It was difficult to travel around until modern bridges and tunnels were built; this semi-isolation led to the development of diverse cultures in each area.<\/p>\n

The grasslands of Aso Caldera (Kumamoto Prefecture) were created by pyroclastic flows and volcanic ash ejected from the volcano. The grassland environment is utilized for Aso Akaushi Beef. In addition to repeated eruptions, the grasslands have also been maintained by human activities such as grass harvesting and burning. The burning of the fields removes dead grass, suppresses reforestation, promotes the growth of food for cattle and horses, and prevents fires.<\/p>\n

The activities of the Earth in the past<\/i> are combined with the wisdom of us living in the present<\/i>, forming diverse cultures.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Gotobiki\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tGotobiki Rock, a huge rhyolite rock on the slope of Mt. Kamikura (Nanki Kumano Geopark \/ Wakayama Prefecture). Gotobiki<\/i> means “a toad” in the local dialect. It is the sacred body of the shrine, which legend says is where the Kumano Gongen (incarnation of God) desceded. \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Grassland\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tGrassland after field burning in Aso (Aso UNESCO Global Geopark \/ Kumamoto Prefecture). Field burning has been practiced since prehistoric times.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Buddha\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tBuddha carved into the cliffs of Fukoji Temple (Oita Bungoono Geopark \/ Oita Prefecture). The carving was made by selecting an easily workable portion of the rock formed by pyroclastic flows that cooled and hardened.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"A\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tA ritual at Miho Shrine (Shimane Peninsula and Shinjiko Nakaumi Estuary Geopark \/ Shimane Prefecture). The ritual originates from a national myth, and two boats pour water over each other to pray for a good catch and a good harvest.\n\t\t\t\t\"CONNECT\"\n\t\tCONNECT\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"COLORFUL\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tCOLORFUL\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"CREATE\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tCREATE\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"CONVEY\"\n\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\tCONVEY\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chapter 1: Stories of the past that shape the present CONNECT The scenery we see every day and the food we eat every day – they are all linked deeply with the history of our planet, which spans hundreds of millions of years. Let’s unravel how the present in front of us connects with the past Earth. CONNECT with people’s lives Japan is one of the most volcanic island countries in the world. Volcanic eruptions cause disasters that threaten our lives, but they also support our lives. On Sakurajima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture), lava and volcanic ash from volcanic eruptions create well-drained slopes that nurture local products such as Sakurajima radish … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-27","page","type-page","status-publish"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nChapter 1: Stories of the past that shape the present - Earthtime Journey<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/earthtime-journey.geopark.jp\/en\/chapter1\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chapter 1: Stories of the past that shape the present - Earthtime Journey\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Chapter 1: Stories of the past that shape the present CONNECT The scenery we see every day and the food we eat every day – they are all linked deeply with the history of our planet, which spans hundreds of millions of years. Let’s unravel how the present in front of us connects with the past Earth. CONNECT with people’s lives Japan is one of the most volcanic island countries in the world. Volcanic eruptions cause disasters that threaten our lives, but they also support our lives. On Sakurajima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture), lava and volcanic ash from volcanic eruptions create well-drained slopes that nurture local products such as Sakurajima radish ... 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