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June 30, 2026
 

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Tomoko Otake

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Tomoko Otake
Tomoko Otake is a senior writer with a strong interest in health, medical and social issues. A native of Nara Prefecture, she obtained an M.A. in journalism from The University of Montana.
A worker clears debris from a shopping center in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, on Tuesday morning following Monday night's earthquake.
JAPAN / Science & Health / EXPLAINER
Dec 9, 2025
What were the long, slow shakes felt throughout eastern Japan on Monday?
Called “long-period ground motion,” this is a type of quake that has a far reach and can be felt strongly by people on the upper floors of tall buildings.
An official of the Japan Meteorological Agency holds a news conference in Tokyo early Tuesday in the wake of a magnitude 7.5 earthquake off Aomori Prefecture.
JAPAN / Science & Health / EXPLAINER
Dec 9, 2025
What is the ‘subsequent quake advisory’ the government issued?
The government is advising people to be on alert for about a week and to double-check their earthquake preparedness.
A court sketch shows Tetsuya Yamagami standing in trial in his first questioning session at the Nara District Court on Nov. 20.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 26, 2025
Abe shooter says ‘despair and sense of crisis’ triggered 2022 attack
Tetsuya Yamagami explained how he came to view the politician as a friend of the Unification Church and the urgency he felt to stop their interactions.
An illustration of Tetsuya Yamagami (left) being questioned by his lawyer on Thursday at the Nara District Court
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 21, 2025
‘I should not have lived this long,’ man accused of killing Abe tells court
Describing his troubled upbringing and the misery caused by his mother’s devotion to the Unification Church, Tetsuya Yamagami expressed regret.
The mother of the man on trial for the 2022 killing of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told the Nara District Court that she feels responsible for her son’s actions.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 19, 2025
Even after Abe’s death, suspect’s mother stays faithful to Unification Church
The church’s influence on Tetsuya Yamagami’s family has become a focal point of his trial, as a grudge he said he held against it had led him to target the prime minister.
A photo of Typhoon Hinnamnor, captured aboard the International Space Station as the typhoon approached islands in Okinawa Prefecture, on Aug. 31, 2022.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 7, 2025
French study says climate change-driven storms endanger flight safety
Storms have become more intense, producing stronger winds and often resulting in greater in-flight turbulence, the study found.
Members of the media gather outside the Nara District Court in the city of Nara on Tuesday hours before the start of the trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, the man accused of fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 28, 2025
Abe shooting suspect Yamagami pleads guilty to murder
On the first day of his trial, Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, admitted to the 2022 killing of the former prime minister.
The Nara District Court has scheduled 19 days for the trial of Tetsuya Yamagami before it hands down a ruling on Jan. 21 next year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 27, 2025
Three years later, trial begins for man accused of ex-PM Abe’s assassination
The delay was due to pretrial proceedings and a lengthy psychiatric evaluation for Tetsuya Yamagami, 45, to determine his fitness to stand trial.
“Future Kid Takara,” a series of anime shorts to be aired on NHK Educational TV in November, attempts to educate children about climate change.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Oct 26, 2025
Japan’s youth are apathetic toward the climate crisis. Could anime change that?
“Future Kid Takara,” a new series set to air on NHK Educational TV, aims to empower children and encourage them to take action against climate change.
After a run-up marked by apathy, organizers soon found they had the opposite problem as crowd control became a concern.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Oct 12, 2025
As the Osaka Expo comes to a close, what will its legacy be?
The mega-event was a resounding success, taking in some 25 million visitors over 184 days. But how its legacy will look in the decades to come remains a question mark.
Visitors lounge on the grassy hill on the top of the Grand Ring during the 2025 Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka in May.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 10, 2025
‘Save the Ring’ calls intensify as Osaka Expo’s end nears
The prefectural and city governments of Osaka have announced they will retain just a 200-meter portion of the world’s largest wooden structure.
Susumu Kitagawa speaks to reporters at Kyoto University on Wednesday after receiving the news that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry the same day.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 9, 2025
Chemistry Nobel winner Kitagawa says downtime helped him think up new material
Waiting on a supercomputer to analyze the structure of a new crystal gave him time to come up with the idea for a kind of material that could, for example, capture carbon dioxide.
Shimon Sakaguchi, an immunologist and a distinguished professor of the University of Osaka, arrives for a news conference Monday night after winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in medicine, in Suita, Osaka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 8, 2025
Nobel laureate Sakaguchi urges support for science despite its ‘poor success rate’
The Nobel Prize winner engaged in research once considered dodgy or even dangerous, and he said he struggled to gain support for it early in his career.
Shimon Sakaguchi, an immunologist and a distinguished professor of Osaka University, attends a news conference after winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in medicine, in Suita, Osaka prefecture, on Monday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 7, 2025
With medical breakthrough, Japan’s latest Nobel winner bucked convention
Shimon Sakaguchi’s unwavering conviction in the validity of his research paid off with the discovery of immune-regulating cells — and a Nobel Prize in medicine.
Shimon Sakaguchi, an immunologist and distinguished professor at Osaka University, attends a news conference after winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in medicine, in Osaka Prefecture on Monday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 7, 2025
Japanese immunologist among three Nobel medicine prize winners
Japanese immunologist Shimon Sakaguchi was awarded the prize along with two other scientists for their discovery concerning peripheral immune tolerance.
Visitors wait in line to enter the Tech World pavilion at the Osaka Expo on Thursday.
JAPAN
Sep 26, 2025
Taiwan showcases chipmaking prowess as a private exhibitor at Osaka Expo
The expo’s guidebook makes only brief references to Taiwan’s food and lifestyles, but the structure of its pavilion and exhibits are rich in symbolism.
A scientist looks at scans of brains at the Memory Centre, part of the Department of Readaptation and Geriatrics at the University Hospital of Geneva (HUG), in 2023.
JAPAN / Science & Health / FOCUS
Sep 17, 2025
Japan’s front-line researchers see bright path ahead for dementia treatment
Four scientists at the forefront of dementia research speak about what kind of future they envision for people with the condition.
Hikers on a trail in Hakuba, Nagano Prefecture. As extreme heat continues to grip Japan, a tectonic shift may be underway in the nation’s summer tourism scene as more people gravitate toward cooler destinations.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Aug 24, 2025
Are ‘coolcations’ the answer for Japan’s heat-weary tourists?
Those in the travel industry are working to advertise cooler destinations, amid the prospect that the heat may prompt people to give up on traveling in the summer altogether.
An illustration of a colony of the Bordetella pertussis bacterium that causes pertussis, or whooping cough. As of Aug. 10, there were 64,467 cases reported this year, according to the latest data from the Japan Institute for Health Security.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 21, 2025
Infectious diseases to watch for in Japan this summer amid surge of cases
Experts believe a recent surge in infections is due to relaxed hygiene measures, drug-resistant bacteria and lowered immunity levels amid extreme heat.
Members of the nonprofit group Japan Youth Memorial Association search for the remains of dead soldiers in a cave in Okinawa Prefecture in February.
JAPAN / History / Longform
Aug 15, 2025
The long search for Japan’s lost soldiers
An decades-long effort to recover the remains of those who died during World War II, most of them abroad, may be entering its final phase.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay's Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team's loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Chinese and Russian bombers and fighter jets stage joint patrol near Japan
A Chinese Air Force H-6 bomber is seen during a joint patrol with Russian military aircraft on Saturday.
U.S. missile moves in Japan send China clear message: A new era has arrived
Soldiers conduct the first Typhon midrange capability live-fire exercise outside of the continental United States, firing an SM-6 missile in July last year in Australia's Northern Territory during Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.
‘The colors speak for themselves’: How Japan’s chroma bible went global
“A Dictionary of Color Combinations” is meant to function as a quick-reference guide for artists, designers and anyone with a passing interest in aesthetics as a quantifiable pursuit.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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