Japan's space agency said Tuesday a capsule brought back by the Hayabusa2 space probe last week from a distant asteroid contained the world's first sample of a material in a gaseous state from deep space. (Japan Times)

Several hundred vehicles were stranded overnight on an expressway that connects prefectures northwest of Tokyo, police said Thursday, as heavy snow hit a wide area along the Sea of Japan coast. (Japan Times)

Japan aims to generate up to 45 gigawatts of power through offshore wind power in 2040, a level that would make the country the world's third-largest generator of such power, as part of efforts to achieve net zero emissions of carbon dioxide by 2050, officials said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Japan has forecast a rise of around 4% in the country's gross domestic product for fiscal 2021, up from its prediction of 3.4% growth in July, Nikkei has learned. (Nikkei)

The estimated number of foreign visitors to Japan in November dived 97.7 percent from a year before to 56,700 due to the prolonged impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Finance Minister Taro Aso and education minister Koichi Hagiuda agreed Thursday to reduce the maximum number of students per class at public elementary schools to 35 by fiscal 2025 from the current 40. (Japan Times)

The international Olympics committee and the Japanese govt determinant to host the Tokyo Olympics but public support for the games is waning in Japan. (WION)

Japan's environment minister has proposed increasing renewable power sources to more than 40 percent of the nation's energy mix by fiscal 2030, about twice the government's current goal. (Nikkei)

Japanese prosecutors have indicted a 42-year-old man over an arson attack at an animation studio in Kyoto. (NHK)

A man in his 20s from Osaka Prefecture is likely to be referred to prosecutors soon for alleged abuse of Hana Kimura, a now-deceased former cast member on the popular reality TV show “Terrace House,” investigative sources said Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Two women found dead inside their residence in Osaka City last week starved to death, police have revealed, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Dec. 15). (tokyoreporter.com)

A panel appointed by the National Police Agency (NPA) proposed Thursday the introduction of a permit system for the possession of crossbows in the nation, to prevent crimes involving the weapon. (Japan Times)

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday voiced regret over a recent year-end dinner where he appeared to flout social-distancing guidelines designed to help halt the virus’s spread as his government faces flak for its handling of the coronavirus response. (Japan Times)

Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike raised the capital’s health care alert system to its highest level on Thursday, sounding the alarm just hours before the city reported a record-breaking 822 new cases of the novel coronavirus. (Japan Times)

A Japanese credit-research firm says the coronavirus pandemic has driven 800 businesses in Japan into bankruptcy. (NHK)

Japan's Cabinet approved a 21.84 trillion yen ($210 billion) extra budget on Tuesday, bringing its total spending for fiscal 2020 to a record high of 175.69 trillion yen, as it grapples to ensure the coronavirus-stricken economy stays on a recovery track. (Kyodo)

Japan's latest efforts to block the spread of the coronavirus are not going down well with the tourism industry. (NHK)

Scientists at Japan's space agency say the Hayabusa2 probe has achieved perfect success in its mission, the goal of which was to bring back samples from a distant asteroid. (NHK)

オンライン上のプライバシーに関する問題は思ったよりも複雑で、デジタルプライバシーを保護することはとても重要です。 (newsonjapan.com)

2020年はデジタル通貨の話題が盛りだくさんの年となった。 (newsonjapan.com)

A Japanese court on Tuesday sentenced a man dubbed Japan's "Twitter killer" to death for the 2017 murders of eight women who posted suicidal thoughts on social media, and a brother of one of the victims. (Japan Today)

A museum in Hiroshima that documents the 1945 atomic bombing of the city has been temporarily closed amid a surge in coronavirus cases. (NHK)

Japan's government finalized plans for social security reforms on Monday. Officials hope the changes will make the system more balanced and beneficial across age groups. (NHK)

The annual Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido, northern Japan, will be held online next year due to a surge in coronavirus infections. (NHK)

Seven "kawari hagoita" wooden paddles portraying prominent people of the year were put on display on Sunday. (NHK)