News On Japan

Emperor, Empress visit Mausoleum of Emperor Showa

Apr 24, 2019 (NHK) - Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko have visited the Mausoleum of Emperor Showa in western Tokyo to report his abdication on April 30.

The couple waved to well-wishers as they left the Imperial Palace on Tuesday morning.

In Hachioji City, they were welcomed by crowds along the route. The couple arrived at the Musashino Mausoleum before noon.

The Emperor, in a morning suit, walked up to the altar led by a senior Imperial Household Agency official. He offered a sacred sprig and made a deep bow. The Empress, in a long gray dress, followed suit.

The Emperor and Empress visited the Musashino Mausoleum in December 1990 to report his accession to the throne.

Source: ANNnewsCH

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Typhoon No. 30 was rapidly weakening over the East China Sea at 4 p.m. on October 25 and is expected to become an extratropical cyclone by 3 a.m. on October 26, according to the latest weather forecast, although its merger with an autumn rain front could trigger prolonged heavy rainfall across western and eastern Japan, particularly along the Pacific coast and around the Izu Islands.

Typhoon No. 30 is expected to cause widespread travel disruption across western Japan on Monday, October 26, with railway suspensions, flight delays, ferry cancellations and possible expressway closures threatening the start of the working week. Forecasters are warning that heavy rainfall could affect transportation across a broad area even after the typhoon weakens into an extratropical low-pressure system early Monday.

Japanese drone manufacturer Terra Drone has delivered interceptor drones to Ukraine's Ministry of Defense for the first time, prompting Russia to threaten retaliatory measures on October 21, as Japan considers expanding domestic drone production and strengthening its coastal defenses through thousands of unmanned aircraft.

A critical security flaw discovered in PHP, a programming language used by an estimated 70% of the world's web systems, has triggered widespread disruptions across Japan since October 21, forcing banks, restaurant chains, government agencies and other businesses to suspend online services as a precaution against potential cyberattacks.

A growing wave of cyberattacks across Japan has raised concerns over the possible use of Chinese-developed artificial intelligence in hacking operations, with personal information belonging to tens of thousands of police employees potentially exposed and major companies forced to suspend online services, while cybersecurity experts warn that slow decision-making within Japanese organizations is allowing damage to spread.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

A fire broke out at a warehouse believed to belong to Kurosawa Film Studio in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, shortly after midnight on October 23, prompting the dispatch of 40 emergency vehicles after a report that a battery was burning, with witnesses describing explosion-like sounds and vibrations strong enough to shake nearby windows.

Four dead fawns with missing body parts have been discovered around Kofukuji and Todaiji temples in Nara between August and October, prompting Nara Prefecture to hold an emergency press conference on October 23 after experts determined that wild animals were unlikely to have caused the injuries, raising suspicions that humans may have deliberately harmed the young deer.

A wave of copper thefts has struck public facilities across Japan, with thieves stripping metal from bridges, park shelters and shrines, including a park known as a popular anime pilgrimage site, while police in Nagano Prefecture have made arrests following a series of similar incidents.

Police in Kochi Prefecture have released footage of a group of teenagers riding motorcycles recklessly through Kochi City on January 1st, 2026, in a New Year's Day incident known as a "first sunrise motorcycle rampage," with 18 people aged between 15 and 19 arrested or referred to prosecutors for suspected violations of the Road Traffic Act.

Empress Emerita Michiko celebrated her 92nd birthday on October 20th, receiving birthday greetings from Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and other members of Japan's imperial family at her residence in Tokyo, as concerns grow over her declining physical strength and signs of fatigue.

The deputy mayor of Saijo City in Ehime Prefecture died after being crushed beneath a festival float weighing approximately 3 tons while participating in a traditional autumn festival on October 17.

Princess Aiko, the only daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, arrived in Tottori Prefecture on October 19 for her first visit to the region, where she is scheduled to attend a national disaster prevention conference and a symposium on disaster preparedness.

Police in Gunma Prefecture rearrested a 30-year-old man on October 18 on suspicion of murdering his former mother-in-law at her home in Ota City last month, following an attack that also left the woman's eldest son injured.