News On Japan

Heavier snowfalls in Japan due to big chill blowing from the Arctic

Asahi — 2010-03-17 04:23:26

Bitterly cold air blowing south from the Arctic Circle triggered highly unusual weather fluctuations that brought heavier snowfalls to areas of Japan this winter. A committee of experts under the Japan Meteorological Agency said the highly unpredictable weather is an anomaly that may occur "only once in 30 years." A key factor was a dramatic change in what meteorologists call the Arctic oscillation. When the oscillation is positive, atmospheric pressure in the Arctic Circle is lower than in regions to the south and warm air flows north into the Arctic. (Asahi)

Troubled space probe, launched by Japan, to return to Earth in June

physorg.com — 2010-03-16 00:27:58

Hayabusa, a space probe plagued with problems since it was launched in 2003, will enter a flight path in a few weeks that will bring it back to Earth in June, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said. The probe, which visited a near-Earth asteroid, is orbiting the sun at a distance slightly different from Earth's orbit. The probe's rockets have been gradually changing this orbit. JAXA said the probe's current path would bring it between the Earth and the moon. Further rocket firings will put the probe on a path for an Earth encounter, which will happen in June. (physorg.com)

Back to the fast-breeder path

Japan Times — 2010-03-13 23:55:33

The Nuclear Safety Commission on Feb. 22 gave the go-ahead to starting the test run of the prototype fast-breeder reactor (FBR) Monju in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture. If the prefectural and municipal governments give their consent, the test run should begin by the end of March at the earliest. The 280,000 kW FBR, which uses a mixed nuclear fuel of uranium and plutonium and is intended to produce more fuel than it burns, is an important part of a nuclear fuel cycle Japan hopes to establish. (Japan Times)

Japan unveils solar powered spacecraft

wfie.com — 2010-03-14 00:04:38

The Japanese Space Agency has unveiled a prototype of what it says is the world's first solar powered sail spacecraft. At a news conference on Friday, Japanese space officials showed off the space yacht. The craft has a diameter of roughly five feet and navigates by means of an ultra-thin membrane that harnesses solar energy. While the sunlight in space is very weak, the space agency believes it will provide enough energy to propel the space yacht. It will be launched together with the country's first Venus orbiter on May 18. (wfie.com)

Not so cute and cuddly: Sea otters wreak havoc on Hokkaido sea urchin fishery

Mainichi — 2010-03-14 05:41:44

Hungry sea otters are inflicting catastrophic damage on sea urchins bred by a local fishery union here, causing losses of at least 5 million yen. The Habomai Fishery Cooperative released about three tons of cultured short-spined sea urchins along the coast of Cape Nosappu in May last year. On March 4 this year, however, fishermen reportedly found an enormous number of sea urchins with broken shells scattered at the bottom of the sea, most of them dead. A similar phenomenon was also seen at other spots near the cape. (Mainichi)

Strong earthquake rocks central Japan

AP — 2010-03-14 12:41:53

A strong magnitude 6.6 earthquake hit off the eastern coast of Japan on Sunday, rattling buildings across a broad swath of the country, including the crowded capital. There were no reports of casualties, with only light damage to structures near the epicenter, according to local officials. The quake hit at 5:08 p.m. and was felt most strongly in central Fukushima prefecture about 210 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. (AP)

Japan team uncovers thalidomide mystery

AFP — 2010-03-13 00:02:41

Japanese scientists have uncovered how thalidomide led to deformities in children born to mothers taking the drug in the 1950s and 1960s, according to a study released Friday. The researchers at the Tokyo Institute of Technology have now unlocked the mechanism by which thalidomide -- an anti-nausea drug given to pregnant women that turned into one of the worst pharmaceutical disasters in history -- triggered the deformities in developing fetuses. The study, which used chick and zebrafish embryos, may lead to the development of safer alternatives for thalidomide, which is now being used for treatments of some cancers and for leprosy, the researchers said. (AFP)

Japan has 99 million unneeded shots of imported new-flu vaccine

AP — 2010-03-13 06:46:35

Japan has 99 million unneeded shots of imported H1N1 flu vaccines, bought for 112.6 billion yen, health ministry officials said Saturday. The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry is negotiating canceling part of the purchases with GlaxoSmithKline plc of Britain and Novartis AG of Switzerland. The government concluded the purchase contracts last October under the premise that two shots would be necessary for one person, but later the number of necessary shots was revised to one for most people. (AP)

Marten killed ibises in Sado / Security camera footage, tracks point to weasel-like animal as culprit

Yomiuri — 2010-03-10 12:22:16

The Environment Ministry announced Thursday that a marten killed nine of 11 Japanese crested ibis that were being prepared to return to the wild in a cage in Sado, Niigata Prefecture. The ministry said it found the small carnivore's tracks inside the birds' cage at the Sado Japanese Crested Ibis Conservation Center on Sado Island. The 11 ibises were being kept in the large pen in preparation for their release into the wild in autumn. (Yomiuri)

Osaka cows plum good but a bit pickled

Japan Times — 2010-03-11 21:43:55

Cows at the Harano stock farm begin to drool at the sight of "ume," the plums used to make the fruity liqueur. As the brown, ripened plums are dropped into their feed, the cows compete with each other to eat them. "They really seem to like the plums, don't they?" said Shoji Harano, who runs the stock farm in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture. For about 10 years, the 55-year-old has been raising his beef cattle on plums added to supplement the regular feed, which includes barley. (Japan Times)

Electric signals passed through insulator in method that could save 80 percent energy

Mainichi — 2010-03-12 12:01:00

In a world first, a team of Japanese researchers has succeeded in transmitting electric signals through insulators using magnetism -- a technology which could spell energy savings of 80 percent in integrated circuit chips. The process was successfully carried out by researchers including Eiji Saito, a professor in condensed matter physics at Tohoku University. It is believed that integrated circuit (IC) chips using the technique could reduce energy consumption by 80 percent in comparison to copper lines, and the research may lead to groundbreaking energy-saving technology. (Mainichi)

Govt finalizes allocation of 100 bil. yen research fund

Yomiuri — 2010-03-10 22:10:19

The government's Council for Science and Technology Policy decided Tuesday on how a 100 billion yen research fund will be divided among 30 leading researchers under the supplementary budget for fiscal 2009. The fund is expected to produce cutting-edge research achievements and boost the country's competitiveness. The researchers who will receive grants of 5 billion yen are Kyoto University Prof. Shinya Yamanaka--who created the world's first induced pluripotent stem cells--and Akira Tonomura--a Hitachi Ltd. fellow and leading expert on electron microscope-based research. (Yomiuri)

Shipment of nuclear waste arrives from U.K.

Japan Times — 2010-03-09 22:30:00

The first delivery of at least 850 canisters of high-level radioactive vitrified waste arrived Tuesday morning by ship from the U.K. in Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture, where it will sit in storage for decades before being buried deep underground. Antinuclear activists argue that with no local government yet willing to host a final disposal site and concern over the international security and environmental risks of transporting so much nuclear waste between the U.K. and Japan, the shipments should end. (Japan Times)

Researchers cultivate mouse intestines from stem cells

AP — 2010-03-10 08:08:09

A group of Japanese researchers said Wednesday they have succeeded in cultivating the intestines of a mouse from stem cells. It is the first time an organ has been cultivated from induced pluripotent stem cells, according to the group led by Nara Medical University professor Yoshiyuki Nakajima. As an organ formed from a person's own cells would not be rejected upon transplantation, the research will be helpful in the study and remedy of some intestinal diseases, Yamazaki said. (AP)

Britain releases Japanese insects to combat weed

AP — 2010-03-09 06:49:07

Insects imported from Japan are to be released into Britain to fight an aggressive weed which is blighting the country, the government announced Tuesday. The bug -- the Alphalara Itadori -- sucks the sap from Japanese knotweed, thereby curtailing its growth. The government said tests have been undertaken which show the insects, known as psyllids, are not a threat to other plants or crops currently growing in Britain. At selected sites, the bugs will be released to judge their effectiveness at stemming the growth of the weed, which has plagued local councils all around the country. (AP)

Japanese genomes inform on gut inflammation culprits

rdmag.com — 2010-03-08 03:14:49

Genes associated with susceptibility to ulcerative colitis in Europeans may not be linked to susceptibility to this disease in the Japanese population or in other ethnic groups. Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory disease of the colon characterized by ulcers in that organ as well as by severe abdominal pain and chronic diarrhea during the active phase of the disease. Anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive drugs are often used to treat ulcerative colitis, but in severe cases, the only known cure is surgical removal of the colon. (rdmag.com)

Experts back Atlantic, Mediterranean bluefin ban

Japan Times — 2010-03-06 00:14:29

International trade in bluefin tuna from the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea should be banned under the so-called Washington Convention because numbers are dwindling, a group of scientists said in a report that supports Monaco's proposal for prohibiting trade in the fish in those waters. The International Union for Conservation of Nature said the bluefin population is now estimated to be less than 15 percent of what it used to be and the species meets trading ban criteria - "the biological criteria for Appendix I" of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. (Japan Times)

Intercollegiate PC contest set for space

Yomiuri — 2010-03-06 00:18:09

Six computers, built by university students for installation in a small satellite to be launched for Venus in May, will undergo tests in a survival competition for durability in the harsh outer space environment. The satellite is a 35-centimeter cube and was created in collaboration with 22 universities and technical colleges in Japan. The project was intended to be the first step to having satellites and probe vehicles created by universities in collaboration with small and midsize companies. (Yomiuri)

Japan says it would ignore bluefin tuna ban

AFP — 2010-03-04 20:49:10

Japan said on Thursday it would ignore any ban on international trade in Atlantic bluefin tuna, a proposal that has won US support ahead of a crucial vote next month. The ban, meant to save the species from extinction, has the support of many European nations but is opposed by Japan, which consumes three quarters of the global catch of bluefin tuna, a species much valued in sushi and sashimi. A ban on the tuna trade would require support by two-thirds of the roughly 175 nations that make up Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). (AFP)

Japanese prof invents painless needles

UPI — 2010-03-04 22:23:53

A Japanese professor has come up with a method of delivering vaccines and drugs that he says is completely painless. Kanji Takada of Kyoto Pharmaceutical University says the device he developed uses micro needles that don't break the dermis or second layer of skin, The Daily Telegraph reported Thursday. The needles are made out of a water-soluble polymer that dissolves when pressed into the epidermis, the very outer layer of skin. (UPI)

Japanese researchers turn raw garbage into fuel matching heat output of coal

Mainichi — 2010-03-05 01:26:53

Technology to produce fuel with the same heat output as coal from raw garbage and waste plastic has been developed by a group of Japanese researchers. Takeshi Sako of Shizuoka University's Faculty of Engineering and other researchers developed a way to produce fuel from food waste in plastic containers that were discarded from convenience stores and supermarkets, and from the non-edible parts of agricultural products. They hope to put the development methods to practical use in three years. (Mainichi)

Mysterious deep-sea fish appears in large numbers

Yomiuri — 2010-03-03 21:55:45

Numerous specimens of large deep-sea fish about whose ecology little is known have been found this winter in coastal areas along the Sea of Japan, such as Toyama and Ishikawa prefectures, a rare phenomenon that has taken local residents by surprise. The fish, ryugu no tsukai, or giant oarfish, is more than five meters long and is usually found at depths of between 200 meters to 1,000 meters. Uozu Aquarium in Uozu, Toyama Prefecture, preserved in formalin one that washed ashore in Kurobe, in the prefecture, and put it on display. (Yomiuri)

Japan's new biodiversity strategy sets goals for 2020, 2050

AP — 2010-03-01 20:52:01

An Environment Ministry panel endorsed on Monday a draft of Japan's new national strategy to conserve and improve biodiversity, which sets specific targets to be implemented by 2020 and 2050, ahead of a major international conference on the issue scheduled for October in Nagoya. The strategy, which is expected to gain Cabinet approval later this month, stipulates Japan will "make efforts to prevent existing biological species from facing new threats of extinction" by 2020 and "further enrich biodiversity in the country compared with current levels" by 2050 among other goals. (AP)

Earthquake prone Japan sees green in new nuclear power plants

csmonitor.com — 2010-03-02 05:14:00

Japan is pressing ahead with an expansion of nuclear power, despite public unease and vocal opposition from activists. Poor in natural resources, the country has long dreamed of reducing its fossil fuel dependency through domestic nuclear power. Now it's casting nuclear energy as a key to the fight against global warming, an argument that critics reject. Japan's debate closely mirrors those worldwide, as governments highlight nuclear power as an easier way to cut carbon emissions than boosting wind and solar power. (csmonitor.com)

Tsunami retain force in open sea, can travel at speeds of 700 kph

Yomiuri — 2010-03-02 06:32:43

Tsunami tend to maintain their force as they travel through the deep sea at the speed of a jetliner, with little in their way to stop them. Tsunami occur when an earthquake meets multiple conditions--such as a magnitude of 6 or more, an epicenter beneath the seabed or along the coast, and a focus less than 80 kilometers deep. Experts say the tsunami that hit Japan's Pacific coast Sunday were triggered when the seabed and water were raised by a massive amount of energy created by the movement of a 600-kilometer-long fault in Saturday's quake in Chile. The powerful force traveled 17,000 kilometers, reaching Japan in less than a day. (Yomiuri)