Saliva Testing for COVID at Japanese Airports
Japan’s government will nearly double the coronavirus testing capacity at international airports such as Haneda by introducing antigen examinations using saliva samples whose results take only about an hour.
Japan Marks 75th Anniversary of End of WWII
Organizers scale back the event to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II amid the novel coronavirus epidemic.
Mysterious Seeds Delivered Across Japan
Packages marked China Post containing mysterious seeds began turning up in mailboxes across Japan, despite no one ordering such items.
Harry Potter Theme Park to Open in Tokyo
Get pumped, Potter fans! Tokyo will get a Harry Potter theme park due to open in 2023.
Introducing Japan's Top Sommelier
A competition in Tokyo has decided Japan’s best sommelier.
Central Japan Railway Adds More Bullet Trains
Central Japan Railway Company increased the number of its Nozomi bullet trains to 12 per hour ahead of the Obon summer vacation.
Japan to Abolish Seal-Stamping System
Life in Japan Traditional Japan
Bad news for fans of Japanese seals! Japan is looking to do away with its custom of physical seal stamping and come up with a digitized process.
Kitamura Shop Like Theme Park for Camera Fans
Kitamura Camera's new location, which just opened in early July 2020, hopes to become a one-stop-shop for amateur and professional photographers alike. And Spoon & Tamago has the scoop!
Hakone Tozan Railway Is Ready to Roll
Typhoon-hit Hakone Tozan Railway is preparing to resume operations. The railway was partially destroyed last October by Typhoon Hagibis. Operators had a successful test run on Wednesday.
Fireball in Japan Identified as Meteorite
Researchers have identified a fireball seen streaking across the night sky over wide areas of Japan in early July as a meteorite.
AI Bartender Serving Up Age-Based Craft Beers
Electronics maker NEC has used artificial intelligence to come up with craft beers reflecting the characteristics of age groups. The AI analyzed some 300 magazines from a 40-year-period to propose beer tastes for people in their 20s to 50s.
More Foreign Than Japanese Residents in 2019
The Tokyo area welcomed more new foreign residents than Japanese citizens last year, marking the first time for the foreign population to increase faster than the Japanese one for the area since the ministry began separating such demographic data in 2012.
Fewer People Travel Day After Summer Holiday
The flow of people at major train stations in Tokyo on the first Monday after Japan’s summer holiday season decreased compared with the previous month.
SoftBank Fails to Declare Billions in Income
Japanese tax authorities have found that SoftBank Group Corporation failed to declare about 40 billion yen in income for the business year through March 2019.
Tokyo On High Alert for Coronavirus
Tokyo officials have raised the four-stage COVID-19 alert to its highest level, since the Japanese capital saw more than 100 new cases for the seventh straight day.
Record 1,000 New Coronavirus Cases in Japan
Japan sees a record number of new cases of novel coronavirus in one day, hitting over 1,000 for the very first time.
JAXA's Asteroid Explorer to Return in December
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency says its asteroid explorer will return to Earth from its mission this December. Hayabusa 2 has been collecting sand and rocks from an asteroid to try and discover the origins of life.
Tokyo Excluded From Go To Travel Campaign
Japan’s government will go ahead with a domestic travel campaign starting July 22, but has excluded Tokyo due to a growing number of new cases of coronavirus. Travelers and firms participating in the travel subsidy program will also need to abide by a li
New Daily High of Coronavirus Cases in Tokyo
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government reported a new daily high of 286 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Japan’s capital on Thursday.
Patients With COVID-19 Antibodies Found Immune
The results of Japan’s large-scale antibody test show all eight patients who had antibodies against the novel coronavirus were immune to COVID-19.
