Colorful carp fly high for town in Iwate

May 06, 2020 | News On Japan

May 06, 2020 (NHK) - People in Japan traditionally display colorful carp-shaped streamers for Children's Day on May 5. Yamada Town in the northeast aimed a little higher than usual this year due to the coronavirus, which has kept many kids at home for the country's week-long spring holiday.

On Tuesday, about 130 of the carp streamers were hung at a lofty 25 meters in the parking lot of the local science museum. The display makes use of two mobile cranes.

A youth league of the town's society of commerce and industry came up with the idea. The members say they want the streamers to be seen by people using the local train line, and even by those traveling on a nearby national road.

Yamada is located in Iwate Prefecture, which was hit hard by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The streamers were sent to the town from across Japan to show support for areas recovering from the disaster.

A 6-year-old boy said staying at home all the time has been boring, but the carp streamers made him happy.

Typhoons No. 28 and 29 Bring High Waves to Japan's Pacific Coast

Two typhoons moving across the Pacific southeast of Japan are expected to remain well away from the Japanese mainland, but powerful swells could bring rough seas to a wide stretch of the country's Pacific coastline throughout the three-day holiday weekend, according to forecasts updated at 3 a.m. on October 10.

Cyberattacks Spread Across Japan

A series of cyberattacks has disrupted business operations and exposed millions of customer records across Japan, with a ransomware attack on a cloud service provider affecting 495 companies and local governments nationwide, while convenience store operator Lawson has disclosed a separate breach involving more than 2.15 million personal information records.

Japan's First 360-Degree Projection Mapping Opens in Osaka

Japan's first 360-degree projection mapping show will open at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts on October 10, transforming the historic building into an immersive world of light, music, and seasonal imagery, with organizers hoping the attraction will also help stimulate the city's nighttime economy.

Tokyo University Professor Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Tokyo University of Science professor emeritus Kenzo Soai has been awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with French chemist Henri B. Kagan for discoveries that transformed scientists' understanding of how chemical reactions can favor one of two mirror-image forms of a molecule.

US Military Halts All Okinawa Operations for 48 Hours

The US military suspended activities by all forces stationed in Okinawa for 48 hours from noon on October 7, an unusual measure following the arrest of a US Marine in connection with a robbery and murder case that has renewed scrutiny of crimes involving American service members.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Society NEWS

Most Sightings of Fugitive Yoichi Hatta Reported in Kanto

Police in Oita Prefecture have revealed that the Kanto region accounts for the largest number of reported sightings of Yoichi Hatta, a fugitive wanted in connection with a fatal hit-and-run incident in Beppu in 2022, with authorities preparing to distribute new wanted posters nationwide from November as the search enters its fifth year.