일본 북부 혹가이도섬 부근의 사라진 무인도, 수색에 매진, 세상에 이럴수가.

일본 북부 "혹가이도"섬 부근에 있었던, 조그만 무인도섬이 어느날 갑자기 해상에서 사라져 버렸다.  이를 찾기위해 일본 해안 경비대가 수색작업을 벌이고 있다는 코미디같은 일이 벌어재고 있다는 뉴스를, Asahi Shimbun 이 보도한것이다.

용왕님께서 노하셔서 바닷속 깊은 곳으로 이동시킨것은 아닐까?

여러분들은 지갑이나 자동차 키를 잃어버릴수있는 날이 있는데, 그럴때 우린 흔히 "오늘은 일진이 대개 나쁜 날이야"라고 투덜댄다.  그런데 더 믿기 어려운것은 지금까지 있었던 조그만 무인도 섬이 갑자기 사라진것을 보는것은 정말로 더 힘든, 매우 일진이 나쁜날로 기억될 것이다"

국제법상으로는 한나라가 점령하고있는 섬이 눈으로 확실히 보여지면 그주변 해역을 자기네 나라것으로 주장할수있는 근거가 되지만, 보이지 않을때는 인정이 안된다는 뜻이다. 그래서 일본은 더 야단법석을 피우는것으로 이해된다.

숨어버린(?) 무인도를 찾기위해 일본의 해안경비대 순찰선이 그주위를 빙빙 돌면서 수색하고는 있지만, 일본은 섬나라이면서도, 지진이 많은 나라이기에 여간 심기가 불편하지 않은것으로 보인다.  조속히 그원인이 밝혀 졌으면 하는 마음이다.

(CNN) — On a bad day, you might lose your wallet or keys, but it's a lot harder to lose an entire islet.

However the Japan Coast Guard is planning a search mission after an uninhabited islet called Esanbehanakitakojima seemingly disappeared off the northern coast of the country.

The small outcrop was previously found some 500 meters off a village called Sarufutsu on the northern tip of Hokkaido island, Japanese daily Asahi Shimbun reports.

Its absence was noticed by author Hiroshi Shimizu, who produced a picture book on hidden islands and had traveled to the area in search of inspiration.

Puzzled, Shimizu asked local fishermen what had happened. An elderly local confirmed that there used to be an island in the vicinity, according to Asahi Shimbun, but it can no longer be seen from land or from nearby boats.

However, other fishermen said that Esanbehanakitakojima shows up as an islet on navigation systems.

Authorities are concerned about its whereabouts as the islet is used to mark Japanese territorial waters in the Northern Territories, an area that is also claimed by Russia. Known to Russians as the Kurils, the islands were taken over by Soviet forces shortly after the end of the World War II.

In 2014, the Japanese government officially named 158 uninhabited islands to demarcate its waters.

Beneath the waves?

According to international law, nations can only claim waters around islands that are visible above the sea surface at high tide.

A 1987 survey showed that Esanbehanakitakojima protruded 1.4 meters above sea level, and a 1988 sea chart from the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan described it as an islet.

"There is a possibility that the islet has been eroded by wind and snow and, as a result, disappeared," Tomoo Fujii, a senior coast guard official, told Asahi Shimbun.

If Esanbehanakitakojima has sunk beneath the waves, Japan will lose 500 meters of territorial waters.

Japan also has a long-running territorial dispute with China over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands in the East China Sea.

http://www.cnn.com/travel/article/japan-island-disappears-scli-intl/