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It can’t be easy keeping count of the number of islands scattered around an area of more than 370,000 square kilometres, in a country that is regularly subjected to volcanic activity and extreme weather.
While Japan has seen the formation of new islands, and the quiet disappearance of another, geographers have said official statistics showing it is made up of around 6,000 islands are way off the mark.
Using digital mapping technology, geographers will soon announce that Japan’s island count is actually double the previously recognised number, according to media reports.
In the first survey of its kind for 35 years, the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan has totted up a total of 14,125 islands – 7,273 more than previously thought.
