Photo: Japan Meteorological Agency/Handout via REUTERS

TOKYO - A volcano erupted in southern Japan on Thursday, spewing steam and ash hundreds of metres into the air, as authorities warned locals not to approach the mountain. Two months later, Shinmoedake - a volcano which featured in a 1960s James Bond movie "You Only Live Twice", and in the same Kirishima range as Io Yama - shot smoke and ash thousands of meters into the sky. Japan’s Meteorological Agency on Friday expanded a no-go zone to the entire mountain from previously just around the volcano’s crater. Officials said explosions have briefly subsided Friday, but cautioned residents in nearby towns against falling volcanic rocks and ash. The eruption of Io Yama, a 1,298 m (4,258 ft) high volcano on the southernmost main island of Kyushu, was the latest in a series of eruptions in Japan this year. Another volcano nearby also erupted violently in March for the first time in seven years. “There is a possibility that (the volcano) will become more active,” he told reporters, warning people to stay away from the volcano as major ash deposits spread from the crater.
Mount Kirishima in Kyushu, Japan, erupts. It is the first time it has erupted since 1768.