Tag Archives: Japan
Chinese and Japanese Ships Contest Disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea
Things are getting tense again in the East China Sea, specifically between the Chinese and Japanese. The dispute is over a small group of uninhabited islands that lie between Okinawa and Taiwan and are known as Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu … Continue reading
PETITION: Challenge Japan to END Taiji Dolphin Hunt for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Bid
Every year in the village of Taiji, Japan there is a yearly hunt which results in the slaughter of over a thousand dolphins. Despite international protest including a 2009 documentary film, the Cove, which graphically displayed the mass dolphin killing, and won … Continue reading
Tension Rising in the South China Sea – Chinese Threatens to Board Ships, India and Vietnam Respond
Tensions are rising in the South China Sea, where at least a half dozen nations are asserting a jumble of overlapping claims of sovereignty, fishing and mineral rights. China is now ramping up their claims by announcing that as of … Continue reading
Update: Tsunami Floating Dock an Instant Tourist Attraction on Oregon’s Agate Beach
Earlier in the month, we posted about a a 66 feet long, 165 tonne, starfish and barnacle encrusted, steel and concrete floating dock that washed up on Agate beach, south-west of Portland, Oregon. We were surprised to hear that the dock, torn free … Continue reading
British Solo Rowers Sarah Outen & Charlie Martell Rescued from Tropical Cyclone Marwar
Tropical cyclone Marwar ended attempts by two solo British rowers to row across the Pacific this week. Sarah Outen, 27, was attempting to traverse the globe using only human power, by either rowing, kayaking or cycling. She began her … Continue reading
70th Anniversary of the Battle of the Coral Sea
Seventy yeas ago, the Japanese and navies of the United States and Australia fought the Battle of the Coral Sea in the waters southwest of the Solomon Islands and eastward from New Guinea in a series of naval battles from May … Continue reading
One Year After the Tsunami – No.18 Kyotoku-maru, Remains As Tsunami Monument or Scar
One year ago today, the largest earthquake in Japan’s history, measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale, struck 70 miles offshore, triggering a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami that washed far inland smashing towns, airports and highways across the north-eastern Japanese coast. Over 16,000 people are known … Continue reading
“Noah”, Japan’s Mini-Arks
Cosmo Power, a Japanese engineering company, has developed the “Noah” a four person mini-ark to help residents along Japan’s coast survive a future tsunami. The “Noah” is a four foot diameter bright yellow sphere made of fiber-reinforced plastic. It is self righting … Continue reading
Japan Take Sea Shepherds to Court over Violence
Japan’s whaling authorities are suing the Sea Shepherds in US courts to attempt to stop the violence directed by the organization against the annual Japanese whale hunt. The Sea Shepherds claim that the annual hunt is illegal, but prefer what they … Continue reading
First Tsunami Flotsam Arrives on West Coast & Perfect Storm Flotsam Discovery in Ireland
Two stories about flotsam and ocean currents. The first flotsam from the earthquake and tsunami, which struck Japan on March 11, is beginning to arrive on the West Coast of the United States. A large black float, believed to have floated from Japan, was … Continue reading
Of Waves and Whales – Whaling and the Tsunami
Within hours of the tsunami that struck northern Japan last March, the internet was abuzz with the somewhat bizarre suggestion that the earthquake and wave which followed might be some sort of cosmic retribution for Japanese whaling. Regardless of what one thinks of that suggestion, … Continue reading
Concerns Over Radiation Spread Faster than the Currents
My wife and I are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary in a week by having dinner at Le Bernardin. I had proposed in the Le Bernardin, when the restaurant was still in Paris, so it has always seemed a great place to celebrate anniversaries. … Continue reading
Of Tsunamis and Seawalls
Recent articles on the power of the tsunami that recently struck Japan say a lot about both the power of the tsunami waves and the challenges of trying to cope with a constant threat from the ocean. Japan’s first line … Continue reading
Washed Away: Three Tsunami-Swept Towns
We have previously posted about the destruction of the town of Minamisanriku by the tsunami, where 9,500 people are reported to be missing. Other news reports now suggest that similar or greater numbers may be missing in the towns of Kesennuma and Rikuzentakata. Washed … Continue reading
U.S. 7th Fleet Moves Away from Stricken Nuclear Plants; Another Reactor Explosion
The US 7th fleet has moved away from the Fukushima nuclear power plants after helicopters from the carrier Ronald Reagan were exposed to an airborne radioactive plume. Seventeen Navy personnel are being treated for what is described as “low levels of contamination.” … Continue reading
How to Help Victims of the Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami
A few sources: Japan earthquake and tsunami: How to help How to help the victims of the Japan earthquake Japan Earthquake and Tsunami: How to Help
The Power of Water – A Town Swept Away and Reactors Melting Down
The New York Times published an article this morning, The Destructive Power of Water, where it compares the force of a ten meter high tsunami wave to ”a hundred tanks coming across you. Even though it’s a fluid, it operates like a solid hammer.” … Continue reading
Huge 8.9 Earthquake off Japan Triggers Tsunami , Tsunami Warnings in Hawaii and USS West Coast
The largest earthquake in Japanese recorded history, 8.9 on the Richter scale, which struck about 80 miles offshore, has triggered devastating tsunami waves on the coast of northeast Japan. Tsunami warnings have gone up in at least 50 countries and territories, … Continue reading
Headline Wars over Whales
There is an interesting conflict going on over the new draft proposal by the International Whaling Commission which would allow limited commercial whaling at levels significantly lower than currently practiced by Japan, Iceland and Norway. Depending on who you listen to this is either a good thing – … Continue reading
