An underwater volcano in the Pacific, which recently gave birth to a new island, has erupted once again, unleashing plumes of ash and smoke into the sky, as revealed in footage released by the Japan Coast Guard.

The volcanic activity occurred off the coast of Japan's Iwo Jima island, situated in the southern part of the Izu-Ogasawara arc. This underwater volcano first erupted on Oct. 21, with heightened activity recorded in the subsequent days. By Oct. 30, explosions were happening every few minutes, propelling rocks and ash into a growing pile about 0.6 mile (1 kilometer) off the island's coast, forming a new volcanic outcrop named Niijima, meaning "new island" in Japanese.

Satellite images from the European Space Agency on Nov. 3 revealed that Niijima is now visible from space. The newly formed landmass measures 330 feet (100 meters) across, with its highest point reaching 66 feet (20 m) above sea level. Although the October eruptions subsided, scientists warned that waves could erode Niijima over time.

However, a recent eruption on Nov. 23 has shaken the baby island, as announced by the japan Coast Guard on Nov. 27. "As a result of observation, eruptive activity was detected on Niijima off the coast of Okinahama on the south coast of Iwo Jima," representatives stated in a translated post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The Nov. 23 eruption sent ash and smoke soaring up to 660 feet (200 m) into the sky. Aerial footage captured a massive explosion of volcanic material, with rocks and debris showering down into the sea from a dark plume. The wind seemed to carry the smoke and ash in one direction as waves lapped at the island's shore.

These recent eruptions suggest a resumption of volcanic activity in the waters around Iwo Jima after a brief period of quiet following an eruption in July 2022. The impact on the survival of Niijima remains uncertain, contingent on the type of rock forming the island. experts noted that if it is composed of lava, there is a chance Niijima could persist.

Iwo Jima and Niijima are situated atop a string of underwater volcanoes along the circum-Pacific Ring of Fire, a horseshoe-shaped tectonic boundary where the Pacific plate converges with numerous other plates.

The Ring of Fire, stretching from the southern tip of South America through North America's west coast, across the Bering Strait, down through Japan, and all the way to New Zealand, stands as the most seismically and volcanically active zone globally.