Matua (island)

{{Short description|Uninhabited island in the Kuril Island chain}} {{Infobox Islands | name = Matua | native_name = Матуа <br>松輪島 | image_name = Matua.jpg | image_caption = | area_km2 = 52 | location = Sea of Okhotsk | coordinates = {{Coord|48.09|N|153.20|E|type:isle|display=inline,title}} | map_image = Kuriles Matua.PNG | map_caption = | archipelago = Kuril Islands | country = Russia | highest_mount = Pik Sarychev | elevation_m = 1496 | population = 0 | ethnic_groups = }} '''Matua''' ({{langx|ru|Матуа}}, {{langx|ja|松輪島|Matsuwa-tō}}) is an uninhabited volcanic island near the center of the Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean, {{cvt|16|km|sp=us}} across Golovnin Strait from Raikoke. Its name is derived from the Ainu language, from “hellmouth”.

==History== Hunting and fishing parties of the Ainu have long visited Matua, but the island had no permanent habitation{{citation needed|date=June 2016}} at the time of European contact. It appears on an official map showing the territories of the Matsumae Domain, a feudal domain of Edo period Japan dated 1644, and the Tokugawa shogunate officially confirmed these holdings in 1715. Some early European documents refer to the island as ''Raukoke''.<ref> {{cite book |last1=von Krusenstern |first1=Adam Johann |author-link1=Adam Johann von Krusenstern |chapter=Officieller Bericht des Hrn. Capit. Ritters v. Krusenstern über des Capitäen's Golownin Reise zur Untersuchung der Kurilischen Inseln. |trans-chapter=Official report by Captain Ritter von Kruzenstern on Captain Golovnin's voyage of investigation of the Kuril islands |editor1-last=Bertuch |editor1-first=Friedrich Justin |editor1-link=Friedrich Justin Bertuch |title=Allgemeine geographische Ephemeriden |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VuEBAAAAYAAJ |language=de |volume=43 |location=Weimar |publisher=Verlag des Landes-Industrie-Comptoirs |date=1814 |page=147 |access-date=2016-06-28 |quote=[...] die Insel ''Raukoke'', auf welcher der ''Pik Sarytscheff'' ist, [...] hatte ich [...] auf meiner Charte auch unter den Namen ''Raukoke'' aufgenommen. Ihr eigentlicher Name is aber, wie Capitän ''Golownin'' berichtet, ''Matua''.}} </ref>

The Empire of Russia claimed sovereignty over the island, which initially passed to Russia under the terms of the Treaty of Shimoda (1855), but reverted to the Empire of Japan per the Treaty of Saint Petersburg along with the rest of the Kuril islands. Japan formerly administered Matua as part of Shimushiru District of Nemuro Subprefecture of Hokkaidō.

During World War II the Imperial Japanese Army had a roughly east–west-oriented airfield, which hosted the IJNAS's 553rd ''Kōkūtai'', equipped with Aichi D3A ''Val'' dive bombers, located on this island, with the active runway potentially of some 1.33 km (4,360 ft) length, located on its southernmost areas. This airfield was of an advanced design, having three separate airstrips including a tertiary airstrip connected to the other two at a 120° angle. This allowed simultaneous takeoff and recovery of air units, as well as improved takeoff potential in adverse wind conditions. In addition, at least two of the primary airstrips were designed with hot water channels embedded within. In icy or snowy weather, hot water generated by the island's geothermal activity would be pumped through these channels, keeping these airstrips free of ice year-round.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Matua Japanese secret island. Secrets of Matua: what the bowels of the Kuril island hide |url=https://hotel-all.ru/en/crimea/ostrov-matua-yaponskaya-sekretnaya-sekrety-matua-chto-skryvayut/ |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=hotel-all.ru |archive-date=2023-07-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230707015041/https://hotel-all.ru/en/crimea/ostrov-matua-yaponskaya-sekretnaya-sekrety-matua-chto-skryvayut/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The island was garrisoned by 7000-8000 men of the 41st Independent Mixed Regiment, 6th Independent Tank Company, and supporting units. During 1944 the US Army Air Forces intermittently bombed the Japanese facilities on the island and ships of the United States Navy shelled it. The Americans sank several Japanese cargo vessels near the island or while at harbor. On June 1, 1944, a Japanese shore-battery on Point Tagan sank the American submarine {{USS|Herring|SS-233|6}}. During the Soviet Battle of the Kuril Islands in the last weeks of World War II, the Japanese garrison surrendered to the Red Army without resistance (August 1945).

After World War II the island came under the control of the Soviet Union, and Soviet Border Troops manned the former Japanese military facilities. Its most important role was radar surveillance of the Kuril Islands. A VHF P-14 radar, "Tall King", was put into service during the 1950s or 1960s,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20170123173654/https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP78T04759A008300010057-4.pdf OSTROV MATUA TALL KING-AIR WARNING RADAR FACILITY, USSR, 1968, Central Intelligence Agency, CIA-RDP78T04759A008300010057-4.]</ref> and a P-35 radar and possibly a PRV-10 “Rock Cake” radar were also in service at some point.

With the withdrawal of Soviet military forces following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the island became uninhabited. The Russian Federation administers it as part of the Sakhalin Oblast. In 2016 some two hundred Russian officials and technical experts made an expedition to the island, part of a plan to rehabilitate the derelict 1.2 km Soviet airfield and establish a new naval and logistical forward military base.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://our-russia.com/27052016120927/russias-kuril-islands-naval-base-what-it-means-strategically |title=Russia's Kuril Islands Naval Base: What It Means Strategically |date=May 27, 2016 |website=www.our-russia.com |access-date=August 12, 2016 |archive-date=August 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808001633/http://our-russia.com/27052016120927/russias-kuril-islands-naval-base-what-it-means-strategically |url-status=usurped }}</ref> A new 1400 meter runway was built between 2016 and 2019, along with new hard stands, both of which are visible on Google Earth and other satellite images. The island now hosts a battery of Bastion anti-ship cruise missiles.<ref>{{cite news |title=Russian Bastion coastal defense missile systems go on combat alert on Kuril Islands |url=https://tass.com/defense/1369601 |website=Tass News |date=December 4, 2021 |access-date=December 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221015163348/https://tass.com/defense/1369601 |url-status=live }}</ref> alt=Matua and Rasshua Islands as seen entering the Golovnin Strait. Matua is in the foreground and Rasshua in the background.|thumb|Matua and Rasshua Islands as seen entering the Golovnin Strait. Matua is in the foreground and Rasshua in the background.

==Geology== [[File:Sarychev Volcano edit.jpg|thumb|left|Eruption of Sarychev volcano in 2009, as seen from the International Space Station]] thumb|Expedition of the Ministry of Defense of Russia and the Russian Geographical Society to the island of Matua. 2016 year Matua is roughly oval, with a length of {{cvt|11|km|mi}} with a width of {{cvt|6.5|km|mi}}, and an area of {{cvt|52|km2|sqmi}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/collections/ichthyology/okhotskia/ikip/Info/physical.html |title=International Kuril Island Project（IKIP） |publisher=University of Washington Fish Collection or the respective authors |access-date=2010-05-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006073043/http://www.burkemuseum.org/static/okhotskia/ |archive-date=2012-10-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The island is a complex stratovolcano with two main peaks.

'''Sarychev Peak''' ({{langx|ru| влк.Сарычева }}, {{langx|ja|芙蓉山}}; ''Fuyōzan'', also known as ''Matsuwa-Fuji'') in the northwest of the island is one of the most active volcanoes of the Kuril Islands. The central cone has a {{convert|250|m|sp=us|adj=on}} wide, very steep-walled crater with a jagged rim, rising to a height of {{cvt|1496|m|ft}}. Lava flows descending on all sides of the peak forms capes along the coast. Eruptions have been recorded since the 1760s, including 1878–1879, 1923, 1930, 1946, 1960, 1976, 1981, 1987, 1989 and 2009, with the largest in 1946 which produced pyroclastic flows that reached the sea. The 2009 eruption was large enough to affect air traffic between Asia and North America.

The much smaller peak to the south, {{langx|ja|天蓋山}}; ''Tengaizan'' has a height of {{cvt|127|m|ft}}. alt=Matua Island Sarychev Peak venting as seen form the Golovnin Strait|thumb|Matua Island Sarychev Peak venting as seen from the Golovnin Strait {{clearleft}}

==Climate== Although it is located at the same latitude as Paris or Seattle, the Oyashio current on the western flank of the Aleutian Low gives Matua a subarctic climate (Köppen ''Dfc'') that is close to a polar climate (''ET''). Unlike the quintessential subarctic climate of Siberia or Mongolia, however, Matua has very heavy precipitation as rain, snow and fog. It also has much milder winters than corresponding latitudes in Manchuria: the mean temperature of the coldest month in Matua is {{cvt|−6.1|C|F|1}} as against {{cvt|−17.8|C|F|1}} in Qiqihar in Heilongjiang. Seasonal lag, like in all the Kuril Islands, is a major feature of the climate, with August being the mildest month and February the coldest. The island experiences very strong winds in the winter months as a result of its exposed location in the middle Kuril islands, subject to the influence of the Aleutian Low. {{Weather box  |metric first= 1 |single line= 1 |location= Matua Island (1947-1996)

|Jan record high C= 10.4 |Feb record high C= 8.9 |Mar record high C= 10.0 |Apr record high C= 13.8 |May record high C= 23.1 |Jun record high C= 26.5 |Jul record high C= 29.0 |Aug record high C= 27.6 |Sep record high C= 26.1 |Oct record high C= 23.9 |Nov record high C= 12.5 |Dec record high C= 11.0 |year record high C= |Jan avg record high C = 2.5 |Feb avg record high C = 2.5 |Mar avg record high C = 3.7 |Apr avg record high C = 8.4 |May avg record high C = 15.6 |Jun avg record high C = 17.7 |Jul avg record high C = 21.9 |Aug avg record high C = 22.4 |Sep avg record high C = 20.0 |Oct avg record high C = 13.6 |Nov avg record high C = 8.3 |Dec avg record high C = 5.3 |year avg record high C = 24.1  |Jan high C= -2.4 |Feb high C= -2.4 |Mar high C= -1.1 |Apr high C= 2.0 |May high C= 6.0 |Jun high C= 9.0 |Jul high C= 12.4 |Aug high C= 14.9 |Sep high C= 12.7 |Oct high C= 8.8 |Nov high C= 3.4 |Dec high C= -0.1 |year high C=  |Jan mean C= -4.3 |Feb mean C= -4.6 |Mar mean C= -3.4 |Apr mean C= 0.1 |May mean C= 3.3 |Jun mean C= 5.7 |Jul mean C= 9.0 |Aug mean C= 11.1 |Sep mean C= 9.3 |Oct mean C= 5.9 |Nov mean C= 1.1 |Dec mean C= -2.3 |year mean C=  |Jan low C= -6.8 |Feb low C= -6.9 |Mar low C= -5.5 |Apr low C= -2.0 |May low C= 0.2 |Jun low C= 2.2 |Jul low C= 5.4 |Aug low C= 7.4 |Sep low C= 6.1 |Oct low C= 3.1 |Nov low C= -1.3 |Dec low C= -4.7 |year low C= |Jan avg record low C = -12.8 |Feb avg record low C = -13.6 |Mar avg record low C = -12.2 |Apr avg record low C = -6.5 |May avg record low C = -3.2 |Jun avg record low C = -0.8 |Jul avg record low C = 1.3 |Aug avg record low C = 3.1 |Sep avg record low C = 1.5 |Oct avg record low C = -0.8 |Nov avg record low C = -6.0 |Dec avg record low C = -10.3 |year avg record low C = -15.1  |Jan record low C= -20 |Feb record low C= -18.9 |Mar record low C= -18.9 |Apr record low C= -10 |May record low C= -5.1 |Jun record low C= -4 |Jul record low C= -3 |Aug record low C= -0.1 |Sep record low C= 0 |Oct record low C= -6.1 |Nov record low C= -11.1 |Dec record low C= -17.8 |year record low C=   |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm= 106.2 |Feb precipitation mm= 81.5 |Mar precipitation mm= 84.8 |Apr precipitation mm= 77.0 |May precipitation mm= 98.8 |Jun precipitation mm= 76.0 |Jul precipitation mm= 74.1 |Aug precipitation mm= 108.7 |Sep precipitation mm= 139.8 |Oct precipitation mm= 150.2 |Nov precipitation mm= 153.1 |Dec precipitation mm= 122.8 |year precipitation mm=  |unit precipitation days= 1 mm |Jan precipitation days= 22.2 |Feb precipitation days= 19.6 |Mar precipitation days= 16.7 |Apr precipitation days= 12.6 |May precipitation days= 11.2 |Jun precipitation days= 8.2 |Jul precipitation days= 7.6 |Aug precipitation days= 9.8 |Sep precipitation days= 12.0 |Oct precipitation days= 16.4 |Nov precipitation days= 21.6 |Dec precipitation days= 22.9 |year precipitation days=  |source 1= Météo climat stats<ref>{{cite web |url=http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/listenormale-1981-2010-2-p239.php |title=Moyennes 1981-2010 Russie (Asie) |language=fr |access-date=1 November 2019 |archive-date=16 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200316050830/http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/listenormale-1981-2010-2-p239.php |url-status=live }}</ref> |source 2= Météo Climat <ref>{{cite web |url=http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/index.php?page=stati&id=2096 |title=Météo Climat stats for Kurilsk |publisher=Météo Climat |access-date=1 November 2019}}</ref> }}

==References== *{{cite gvp |name=Sarychev Peak |vn=290240 |access-date=2021-06-25}}

==Notes== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading == *Gorshkov, G. S. ''Volcanism and the Upper Mantle Investigations in the Kurile Island Arc''. Monographs in geoscience. New York: Plenum Press, 1970. {{ISBN|0-306-30407-4}} *Krasheninnikov, Stepan Petrovich, and James Greive. The History of Kamtschatka and the Kurilski Islands, with the Countries Adjacent. Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 1963. *Rees, David. ''The Soviet Seizure of the Kuriles''. New York: Praeger, 1985. {{ISBN|0-03-002552-4}} *Takahashi, Hideki, and Masahiro Ōhara. ''Biodiversity and Biogeography of the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin''. Bulletin of the Hokkaido University Museum, no. 2-. Sapporo, Japan: Hokkaido University Museum, 2004.

==External links== {{Commons category-inline|Matua Island}} *{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223043232/http://www.oceandots.com/pacific/kuril/matua.php |date=December 23, 2010 |title=Matua Island at Oceandots }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matua (Island)}} Category:Matua (island) Category:Active volcanoes Category:Islands of the Sea of Okhotsk Category:Islands of the Russian Far East Category:Stratovolcanoes of Russia Category:Islands of the Kuril Islands Category:Uninhabited islands of Russia Category:Volcanoes of the Kuril Islands Category:Mountains of the Kuril Islands