Mount Aso Opens New Virtual Tour

Above, the snow-covered Mt. Aso ropeway station parking lot and Iwao Temple Okuno-In. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Kaiju fans know that Mount Aso is where the two Rodans met their demise in the 1956 movie.

Mount Aso Volcano National Park in Kyushu is making things more interesting for park visitors.

According to the Asahi Shimbun:

ASO, Kumamoto Prefecture--Visitors to a new facility at an aerial ropeway station here on Mount Aso can now experience seasonal changes in virtual reality, along with a peek into an active volcano. 

The Aso Super Ring facility, located on the second floor of the Mount Aso Ropeway’s Asosan-Nishi station, the starting point, is equipped with a 6-meter-diameter diorama of Aso, onto which images are projected. 

Mount Aso comprises five volcanoes inside one of the world’s largest caldera. 

The range reaches 1,592 meters at its highest point. 

Using projection mapping technology, colorful images are displayed on the surface of the all-white diorama for about eight minutes.

I visited Mount Aso Volcano National Park in 2007, but couldn't see much (except for the exhibits in the park's museum) due to a blizzard. Mount Aso is covered in The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan on page 46.

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