Кацурао: История и последствия аварии на Фукусима-1

Katsurao is located in the Abukuma Plateau of central Fukushima in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan, with a mean altitude of over .

Per Japanese census data, the population of Katsurao was relatively constant over the past 40 years until the nuclear disaster.

Katsurao has a humid climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Katsurao is The average annual rainfall is with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .

The area of present day Katsurao was part of Mutsu Province. The remains of Kofun period burial mounds have been found in the area. During the Nara period, it was part of ancient Futaba District in Iwaki Province. During the Edo period, it was part of Sōma Domain, ruled by the Sōma clan until the Meiji restoration. After the Meiji restoration, on April 1, 1889, the village of Katsurao was created within Futaba District, Fukushima with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889.

Although Katsurao escaped significant damage from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, it was located downwind of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Although outside the nominal exclusion zone, as a result of wind patterns following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, the entire population of the village was evacuated by government order by May 2011. In March 2013, the government divided the village into three zones, with the majority of the village area cleared for unrestricted return of its inhabitants by spring of 2014, a smaller area cleared for daylight return only, and a larger area in which the existing restrictions against entry would be maintained until at least 2017. However, in March 2014, the government postponed lifting of the restrictions on return for a year due to remaining high levels of radiation. On June 12, 2016, the evacuation order was lifted for approximately two thirds of the village area, with the mountainous region bordering neighbouring Namie remaining restricted due to high residual radiation.

The economy of Katsurao was formerly heavily dependent on agriculture.

Katsurao had one public elementary school and one public junior high school operated by the village government in March 2011. The elementary school remains closed. The village did not have a public high school.

Katsurao is not served by any passenger train stations.