Emperor Akihito canceled his attendance at the rituals and other events scheduled for Wednesday after developing a cough the previous night, the Imperial Household Agency has said. (Japan Times)

The Foreign Ministry confirmed Wednesday the name for Japan’s forthcoming new Imperial era, Reiwa, means “beautiful harmony” in English. (Japan Times)

Japanese authorities have recognized the October 2016 suicide of a man involved in satellite control operations at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Tsukuba Space Center as a work-related death, it was learned Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Police arrested Wednesday an associate professor of a university in Tokyo for killing pigeons in a park by feeding them food mixed with insecticide. (Kyodo)

There are millions around the world who are superstitious in some way, shape or form, with many believing in the power of luck charms and amulets too. (newsonjapan.com)

Major convenience store operator FamilyMart Co. on Tuesday introduced checkouts that use facial recognition technology as the company looks to make adjustments amid a nationwide labor shortage. (Japan Times)

NHK has learned the five proposed names that were not selected to represent Japan's next Imperial era. (NHK)

Japan is struggling with a growing number of foreign patients who fail to pay their medical bills, according to a recent government survey. (Nikkei)

A defense lawyer for Carlos Ghosn says his legal team has asked a Tokyo court to separate the former Nissan Motor chairman's trial from the carmaker's. (NHK)

Japan's Hayabusa2 space probe is set to start descending toward an asteroid in about two days on a new mission to create an artificial crater on its surface. (NHK)

The Japanese government on Tuesday approved sending two Self-Defense Forces officers to a multinational peacekeeping force in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula later this month, in what would be the first dispatch of SDF personnel to an overseas mission not under the command of the United Nations. (Kyodo)

An 18-year-old Japanese woman, once recognized for having the world's longest teenage hair, had her first-ever haircut Tuesday before starting life at university. (Kyodo)

Japan’s Rakuten said on Monday it will book a 110 billion yen ($989.74 million) gain in the quarter through March on its investment in Lyft following the U.S. ride-hailing firm’s listing last week. (Japan Today)

Police in Thailand say a group of Japanese men who ran a call center scam defrauded people in Japan of more than 900,000 dollars. (NHK)

Japan is relaxing work visa requirements in the food service industry to deal with a chronic labor shortage, but the number of workers who can take the first qualification exams will be limited because industry bodies responsible for developing the tests have not had enough time to prepare for the event. (Nikkei)

Many Japanese companies rushed Monday to secure business opportunities with the unveiling of the new imperial era name that will be used from May 1, preparing or releasing products inscribed with the two Chinese characters "Reiwa." (Kyodo)

New recruits marked their first day of work at companies and public offices across Japan on Monday, the start of the country's fiscal 2019 that coincided with the implementation of stricter overtime restrictions. (Kyodo)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a former video game world champion over a burglary in Nerima Ward earlier this year. During questioning, he admitted to dozens of other similar break-ins, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

An Akita dog, a Japanese breed popularized in the U.S. film "Hachiko" starring Richard Gere and adored by Russian figure skating sensation Alina Zagitova, will be honored for distinguished service after coming to the rescue of an elderly woman in Semboku, Akita Prefecture. (Japan Today)

"Reiwa" is a name that will be on the lips of most Japanese today and it will be for years to come. It's the name the Japanese government has selected for the new era which is set to start when Crown Prince Naruhito becomes the new Emperor on May 1. (NHK)

A nursery worker has been arrested for allegedly stabbing a colleague to death in her apartment in Tokyo last week, police said. (Japan Times)

Two Japanese teenagers have been found dead in Australia's Lake McKenzie on Fraser Island after being reported missing from a school tour. (Japan Today)

Controversial former sumo grand champion Futahaguro, who retired in the late 1980s after a rift with his manager, died last month at age 55, Japanese media said Saturday. (Japan Today)

Japanese trains are famous around the world for their style, comfort and speed. In the countryside of Kyoto though, you may not have speed, but you do comfort and style. (ONLY in JAPAN)

A panel of doctors in Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority says iodine tablets should be distributed in advance to residents under 40 to mitigate the effects of radiation exposure due to a nuclear accident. (NHK)