IT had a key role in the 1967 Bond film, You Only Live Twice – now Mount Shinmoedake is back in the news.
Shinmoedake was used to depict the exterior of a criminal organisation’s secret lair.
But now the volcano has been spewing ash for days, with the eruptions turning explosive early on Friday.
Volcanic activity from the Kyushu island volcano could continue for several months, experts say, with a risk from falling rocks as far as 2.5 miles away.
The Japanese Meteorological Agency said large explosions happened in the early hours of Friday morning.
Smoke rose 4500m into the air.
Vibrations have caused nearby buildings to shake, and molten lava is running down one side of the volcano.
An eruption in 2011 caused hundreds of people to leave their homes.
Japan has 110 active volcanoes.
Shinmoedake was used in the Bond film to depict the exterior of SPECTRE chief Ernst Blofeld’s secret hideaway.
The film, which starred Sean Connery as 007, featured an iconic ariel battle above the volcano between Bond’s autogyro Little Nellie and a flight of enemy helicopters, which he shoots down.
Shinmoedake’s first recorded eruption was in 1716.
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