title: Nishinoomote, Kagoshima
text: # Nishinoomote, Kagoshima
  
  Nishinoomote (西之表市, Nishinoomote-shi) is a city located on the island of Tanegashima, in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. As of June 2013, the city has an estimated population of 16,418 and a population density of 79.8 persons per $km^2.$ The total area is 205.75 $km^2.$
  
  ## Geography
  
  Nishinoomote, located on the northern portion of Tanegashima, is bordered by the East China Sea to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east, and by the Osumi Strait separating Tanegashima from the Kyushu mainland. The city also includes the offshore island of Mageshima within its borders.
  
  ### Climate
  
  Nishinoomote has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with long, hot, humid summers and mild winters. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year, with particularly heavy rainfall in May, June, August and September. The area is subject to frequent typhoons.
  
  ### Surrounding municipalities
  
  * Nakatane
  
  ## History
  
  Kitatane Village was established on April 1, 1889. It was elevated to town status on April 1, 1926 and renamed Nishinoomote. Towards the end of World War II, the town was garrisoned by a 12,000-man force from the Imperial Japanese Army and was thus subjected to bombing by the United States Navy in 1945. It was elevated to city status on October 1, 1958.
  
  ## Transportation
  
  ### Seaport
  
  Nishinoomote Port is a regional transportation hub, with frequent ferry service to Kagoshima, Tokyo, Kobe, and Osaka, as well as Okinawa and the other Osumi islands.
  
  ### Highway
  
  * National Route 58
  
  ## Sister cities
  
  * Isa, Kagoshima, since November 10, 1962
  * Sakai, Osaka, since October 18, 1986
  * Nagahama, Shiga, since October 8, 1987
  * Vila do Bispo, Portugal, since October 1, 1993 (in recognition of the fact that it was Fernão Mendes Pinto, a Portuguese explorer, who claimed to be the first European to set foot on Japan, and did so on Tanegashima in 1543.)
  