Volcano
Kuju and Tsurumi: 2 Live Cameras in Japan
Two volcanoes that heat the hot springs of Oita from below. The Kuju range, which includes the highest peak on mainland Kyushu, and Tsurumi and Garan behind Beppu.
What you can see
Kuju is not one mountain but a cluster of peaks. Naka-dake among them is the highest point on mainland Kyushu. Fumaroles vent on the flanks, and the area produces geothermal power.
Tsurumi and Garan stand directly behind Beppu. The famous volume of hot water at Beppu is a consequence of the heat under these mountains. Partway up Garan is Tsukahara Onsen, where an old crater still vents and strongly acidic water comes to the surface.
Both are Meteorological Agency cameras installed to watch for eruptions, refreshing every two minutes. Being made for monitoring rather than scenery has one advantage: the summit stays in frame all day.
Water off these two mountains ends up in the rivers covered by the Rivers of Oita cameras.
Cameras you can watch now: 2
All 2 are still images. Tap one to open it in the camera list.
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Sample August 2026
Mount Kuju
Oita · Volcano · Nature
A cluster of peaks. The northern slope of Mount Hossho holds the Iozan vent field, where white steam creeps down the hillside.
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Sample August 2026
Mount Tsurumi and Mount Garan
Oita · Volcano
The mountains that feed the Beppu hot springs. Tsukahara spa lies partway up Garan, where an old crater still gives off steam and strongly acidic water.
When to watch
Late spring, May into June, is the Miyama-kirishima season on Kuju. The slopes take on a pink cast for a couple of weeks — visible as a colour shift even on a distant camera.
Winter brings rime ice. Kuju gets proper snow despite being in Kyushu, and it can be raining in Beppu while the tops are white. Open the Tsurumi camera and the Kuju camera one after the other and the difference shows.
Steam reads whiter and thicker on cold days. Looking thin in summer does not mean less of it.
Mornings are better. Cloud builds over the Oita mountains in the afternoon and the summits are often gone by early afternoon.
Where Kuju and Tsurumi is
Agencies publishing the cameras on this page
- Japan Meteorological Agency — volcano surveillance cameras (PDL 1.0) — Official site
The footage belongs to each agency. This site is an unofficial guide, and each sample frame was copied once per camera under that agency's terms of use.