2012年4月3日火曜日
Storm warning for western and eastern Japan
Stormy weather is hitting western through eastern Japan on Tuesday.
The strong winds and rain are due to a low-pressure system over the Sea of Japan.
In Tonami City in Toyama Prefecture, central Japan, winds of up to 123 kilometers per hour were observed on Tuesday afternoon.
Heavy rain hit some spots in western Japan. In Kobe, 50.5 millimeters of rain fell between 1:30 and 2:30 PM.
The Meteorological Agency says the system will move eastward and cross over northern Japan overnight.
Winds of up to about 90 kilometers per hour are forecast in the Kanto and Tohoku regions from Tuesday evening.
The agency says heavy rain may fall in parts of the Pacific coast from western through northern Japan. It also warns of strong winds, thunderstorms and tornadoes.
2012年3月5日月曜日
5 likely died of starvation in no-entry zone
NHK has learned that at least 5 people probably died of starvation after being stranded in the evacuation zone around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant following the disaster last year.
The earthquake and tsunami that struck eastern Japan in March last year left 1,605 people dead in Fukushima Prefecture.
Local authorities in the area say that at least 5 others found later in the no-entry zone around the Fukushima nuclear plant had starved to death.
The government evacuated residents around the plant after the accident.
But some people were left behind. One man in his 70s, who lived about 5 kilometers from the plant, was found in late March on the 2nd floor of his home. The 1st floor had sustained damage from the tsunami.
A woman in her 60s was found dead last April inside her home, where she lived alone. She had had trouble walking.
All of the 5 dead were found grossly under weight.
Police and medical authorities examined the 5 bodies and said they appeared to have been stranded, either because they were unable to evacuate on their own or could not ask for help.
The earthquake and tsunami that struck eastern Japan in March last year left 1,605 people dead in Fukushima Prefecture.
Local authorities in the area say that at least 5 others found later in the no-entry zone around the Fukushima nuclear plant had starved to death.
The government evacuated residents around the plant after the accident.
But some people were left behind. One man in his 70s, who lived about 5 kilometers from the plant, was found in late March on the 2nd floor of his home. The 1st floor had sustained damage from the tsunami.
A woman in her 60s was found dead last April inside her home, where she lived alone. She had had trouble walking.
All of the 5 dead were found grossly under weight.
Police and medical authorities examined the 5 bodies and said they appeared to have been stranded, either because they were unable to evacuate on their own or could not ask for help.
2012年2月19日日曜日
Plum festival opens at Mito's Kairakuen garden
An annual Plum Festival has opened at the Kairaku-en garden north of Tokyo.
Kairaku-en in Mito City, Ibaraki prefecture, is known as one of the 3 most beautiful gardens in Japan.
The 130,000-square-meter garden has some 3,000 plum trees of about 100 varieties.
Garden officials say because of the colder than usual weather this winter, only about 50 trees have come into bloom.
On Saturday, visitors could be seen strolling among the trees, and photographing the ones with blossoms.
Last year's earthquake damaged some of the garden's slopes. It also cracked the clay walls in an old summer house of a feudal lord on the grounds. Restoration work was completed earlier this month.
Park officials say they expect the best time to see the blossoms in full bloom will likely be around mid-March.
The Plum Festival continues until the end of March.
Kairaku-en in Mito City, Ibaraki prefecture, is known as one of the 3 most beautiful gardens in Japan.
The 130,000-square-meter garden has some 3,000 plum trees of about 100 varieties.
Garden officials say because of the colder than usual weather this winter, only about 50 trees have come into bloom.
On Saturday, visitors could be seen strolling among the trees, and photographing the ones with blossoms.
Last year's earthquake damaged some of the garden's slopes. It also cracked the clay walls in an old summer house of a feudal lord on the grounds. Restoration work was completed earlier this month.
Park officials say they expect the best time to see the blossoms in full bloom will likely be around mid-March.
The Plum Festival continues until the end of March.
2012年2月16日木曜日
Emperor to be hospitalized on Friday for surgery
Emperor Akihito will enter the hospital on Friday, one day before his scheduled coronary bypass surgery.
The Emperor has been diagnosed with angina. Doctors advised him to undergo a bypass operation on 2 of his 3 coronary arteries to increase the blood supply to his heart.
The surgery will take place at the University of Tokyo hospital.
Doctors say if there are no complications, the Emperor will be able to leave the hospital in about 2 weeks.
The Emperor will continue to take part in official duties until Friday while keeping a watch on his health.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012 15:51 +0900 (JST)
The Emperor has been diagnosed with angina. Doctors advised him to undergo a bypass operation on 2 of his 3 coronary arteries to increase the blood supply to his heart.
The surgery will take place at the University of Tokyo hospital.
Doctors say if there are no complications, the Emperor will be able to leave the hospital in about 2 weeks.
The Emperor will continue to take part in official duties until Friday while keeping a watch on his health.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012 15:51 +0900 (JST)
2012年1月30日月曜日
More water leaks found at Fukushima nuclear plant
More water leaks have been found at the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Tokyo Electric Power Company told reporters on Monday morning that it has discovered 2 additional water leaks at the nuclear plant.
This comes after it was announced on Sunday that nearly 8 tons of water was found to have leaked in 14 locations at the plant.
One of the 2 new findings involves about 30 liters of water that has leaked from a device that is removing salt from contaminated water. The other leak is from a valve of a pipe that is injecting water into a reactor.
TEPCO says leaked water has neither spilled out of the plant, nor flowed into the sea.
The utility firm is trying to determine whether water in some of the pipes froze and cracked the pipes, or loosened the pipes' connections.
It plans to quickly implement preventive measures, including carrying out more patrols early in the morning and wrapping insulation around the pipes and other equipment.
The temperature on Monday morning around the plant dropped to minus 8.7 degrees Celsius.
Tokyo Electric Power Company told reporters on Monday morning that it has discovered 2 additional water leaks at the nuclear plant.
This comes after it was announced on Sunday that nearly 8 tons of water was found to have leaked in 14 locations at the plant.
One of the 2 new findings involves about 30 liters of water that has leaked from a device that is removing salt from contaminated water. The other leak is from a valve of a pipe that is injecting water into a reactor.
TEPCO says leaked water has neither spilled out of the plant, nor flowed into the sea.
The utility firm is trying to determine whether water in some of the pipes froze and cracked the pipes, or loosened the pipes' connections.
It plans to quickly implement preventive measures, including carrying out more patrols early in the morning and wrapping insulation around the pipes and other equipment.
The temperature on Monday morning around the plant dropped to minus 8.7 degrees Celsius.
40% of Japanese to be over 65 years old in 2060
A newly-released report predicts that Japan's population will shrink by about 40 million in the next 50 years while about 40 percent of the people will be aged 65 or older.
The report on Japan's expected demographic trends through 2060 was compiled by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
It says Japan's population will fall below 100 million in 2048 from the 2010 figure of 128 million. In 2060, it says the population will drop to 86 million.
It also says the average life expectancy is likely to expand further to 84.19 for men and 90.93 for women.
The report says the average number of babies born per woman will be 1.35 in 2060. That's slightly up from the previous estimate 6 yeas ago.
The institute says this is because more women who have held off having children are expected to give birth in their late 30's.
It predicts the number of people between the ages of 15 to 64 years will fall by nearly 50 percent to 44 million in 2060.
The previous estimate showed the proportion of the population aged 65 or older will reach 40 percent in 2052.
The speed of aging is expected to slow a little.
The institute says with the aging population and lower birth rates, the decrease in population will continue.
The report on Japan's expected demographic trends through 2060 was compiled by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
It says Japan's population will fall below 100 million in 2048 from the 2010 figure of 128 million. In 2060, it says the population will drop to 86 million.
It also says the average life expectancy is likely to expand further to 84.19 for men and 90.93 for women.
The report says the average number of babies born per woman will be 1.35 in 2060. That's slightly up from the previous estimate 6 yeas ago.
The institute says this is because more women who have held off having children are expected to give birth in their late 30's.
It predicts the number of people between the ages of 15 to 64 years will fall by nearly 50 percent to 44 million in 2060.
The previous estimate showed the proportion of the population aged 65 or older will reach 40 percent in 2052.
The speed of aging is expected to slow a little.
The institute says with the aging population and lower birth rates, the decrease in population will continue.
2012年1月16日月曜日
Japan to name 39 uninhabited isles
Japan plans to give official names to 39 uninhabited islands that serve as the basis for the boundary of the country's exclusive economic zone, or EEZ.
The plan emerged after the government found that 7 islands around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea remain nameless in official documents.
In 2010 a Chinese trawler collided with two Japan Coast Guard patrol ships in Japanese territorial waters near the Senkaku Islands.
The Japanese government says it plans to strengthen control of the key islands by officially naming them. The step is also designed to clearly demonstrate Japan's EEZ border to other nations and at home.
The government is asking local authorities what the islands are called in their areas.
It plans to decide the names and put them on maps and sea charts by the end of March after consulting agencies concerned.
Of Japan's more than 6,000 remote islands, most are uninhabited. Some have no agreed upon names.
The plan emerged after the government found that 7 islands around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea remain nameless in official documents.
In 2010 a Chinese trawler collided with two Japan Coast Guard patrol ships in Japanese territorial waters near the Senkaku Islands.
The Japanese government says it plans to strengthen control of the key islands by officially naming them. The step is also designed to clearly demonstrate Japan's EEZ border to other nations and at home.
The government is asking local authorities what the islands are called in their areas.
It plans to decide the names and put them on maps and sea charts by the end of March after consulting agencies concerned.
Of Japan's more than 6,000 remote islands, most are uninhabited. Some have no agreed upon names.
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