Ryukyu Islands

The Ryukyu Islands /riˈuːkjuː/ (琉球諸島, Ryūkyū-shotō),known in Japanese as the Nansei Islands (南西諸島, Nansei-shotō, lit. "Southwest Islands") and also known as the Ryukyu Arc (琉球弧, Ryūkyū-ko), are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yonaguni the southernmost. The larger are mostly volcanic islands and the smaller ones are mostly coral islands. The largest of the islands is Okinawa.

The climate of the islands ranges from humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) in the north to tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af) in the south. Precipitation is very high, and is affected by the rainy season and typhoons. Except the outlying Daitō Islands, the island chain has two major geologic boundaries, the Tokara Strait between the Tokara and Amami Islands, and the Kerama Gap between the Okinawa and Miyako Islands. The islands beyond the Tokara Strait are characterized by their coral reefs.