weather (Page 3)
The stunning natural phenomenon looks more like an otherworldly dragon as it’s filmed slowly retreating up to the sky.
Summer may be the rainy season, but hail like this is freaky even for Japan.
The morning news staple is event television for these cute kitties.
A little rain isn’t going to hurt you. Unless you’re a mogwai, of course…
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Several visitors to the doujin anime, game, and manga convention Comiket have reported peculiar clouds generated by the heat and sweat of everyone present.
While many believe the tradition of making the ghost-like doll can be traced back to a bald-headed monk, history suggests it actually began with a small girl.
As a natural phenomenon loved by many, snow can be pretty cool. Unfortunately, in Tokyo, it’s often more like a wet, cold monster that ruins everything!
September in Japan is the bridge between summer and autumn, with warm humid days mixed in with cool nights and passing typhoons dumping some of the year’s highest amounts of rainfall around the country.
With the rain set to continue, umbrella sales are in full swing at the moment, and some of the best ones here are simply magic. They won’t send you flying through the air like Mary Poppins, but they will reveal hidden secrets when the rain begins to fall!
Japan may have an image as an all-work and no-play sort of place, but you’ve got to give the country credit for coming up with Umi no Hi. Observed on the third Monday of July, Umi no Hi literally means “Ocean Day,” but “Marine Day” and “Beach Day” would also be acceptable translations. It’s a national holiday expressly created to give everyone a day off to go have fun at the beach, and it just might be the greatest socially accepted reason ever for blowing off work.
This year, Japan got so into the spirit of the holiday that even people in prefectures with no coastline swore they could smell the sea. But was this just a summery olfactory hallucination, or a legitimate Umi no Hi miracle?
Heavy winds, low visibility and snow drifts the size of houses. What do you do? Go to that lecture at 8:30 or grab as many blankets as you can and binge watch Dragon Ball? Although the answer might be pretty simple for some university students in Japan, the ones in Hokkaido know there is no such thing as a snow day. Freshman students at Hokkaido University are sometimes amazed to encounter the incredibly snowy weather conditions that face them on their way to class. There is not much else they can do but bundle up, snap a few pictures and share them with the Internet.
We’ve collected some of the best pics taken by Hokkaido’s students this winter. Would you go to class in this weather?
If the popularity of Bing Crosby’s famous holiday song is any indication, many people all over the world are dreaming of a white Christmas. But according to the past 30 years of snowfall data, several prefectures in Japan will almost surely be unable to hear sleigh bells in the snow.
Take a look at the following map created by Japanese weather site Tenki.jp to find out if the area of Japan you live in will have a white Christmas!
This past week marked the 19th typhoon of the season. Hitting Japan very soon after typhoon No. 18, Vongfong–which translates as “wasp” in Cantonese–battered the islands of Japan with incredibly heavy rains and strong winds.
While much of Japan suffered under the powerful force of nature, one prefecture remained virtually untouched, even while all of its neighbors took a beating. Find out why after the jump.
As of this writing Typhoon 19 is just about right on top of Okinawa. Classified as a “Super Typhoon” by NASA it is far greater in size and power than last week’s storm. The typhoon also goes by the name Vongfong, which we assume is Chinese for “killjoy” because of its incredibly bad timing.
If Typhoon 19 veers East and moves across most of Japan, it will do so right over the long weekend. With all the destruction and at very least wet nuisances brought by typhoons, the one sliver of light had always been that they often brought days off work and school with them too. Not this weekend, however, and many wait to see whether the weather will dash their holiday plans or not.
Luckily there is a plethora of online weather services for us to watch Typhoon 19 in near-real-time that are all both very informative and gorgeous enough to make you want to refer to them even after the storm has passed.
I thought summers in America were hot, until I moved to Asia and learned firsthand what a hot summer is really like. In Japan, China and other parts of East Asia, the summer can be brutal to the point that people flock to public pools by the thousands, risking other people’s disgusting mud butt and possible drowning by crowd crush just to enjoy a few moments in the tepid water.
But a number of enterprising Chinese college students have apparently figured out a genius workaround: Just put a pool in your own dorm room.
While we rarely think about it, the way our atmosphere works is pretty amazing–filtering out all that cosmic radiation and keeping us alive. It also has tons of moisture in it, which, in addition to giving some nifty lightning shows, is also what gives us really cool stuff like sun dogs and rainbows. While it’s nothing special to see a piece of a rainbow or even half of one in the sky after a rainshower, it’s quite another thing to see a full rainbow shimmering in the sky.
But that’s exactly what appeared over Tokyo on Friday, setting Twitter ablaze with photos of the beautiful phenomenon. And because we’re ready for some uplifting fun this weekend, here’s all the photos we could find! Guaranteed to make your day 200% more magical or your leprechaun back.

















Can a downtown Tokyo super sento bathhouse beat a hotel for a one-night stay?
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Two food hacks take Japan’s convenience store fried chicken to amazing new sandwich heights
Fading Tokyo – Searching for signs of the Showa era as local neighborhoods evolve[Photos]
Which Gundam is the favorite for fans in different countries? Gundam election announces results
Kiki’s Deliver Service heroine gets new design from Spy x Family artist for 40th anniversary
This overlooked neighborhood east of Tokyo is awesome in many ways, left us with just one regret
Famous Tokyo cherry blossom spot installs view-blocking screens to fight overcrowding[Video]
Oodles of noodles! Udon chain pays homage to all 47 prefectures of Japan with 47 dishes【Photos】
Hinamatsuri Pikachu kimono couple plushie on the way to celebrate Japan’s Doll Festival【Photos】
Tokyo’s best museum for foreign travelers finally reopens after being closed for four years
Pokémon lacquerware series expands for Year of the Horse with new handcrafted design[Video]
Tokyo subway and almost all Tokyo train lines now accepting credit card tap payments
Totoro Fund line of beautiful artwork and apparel lets you help the real-world Totoro Forest
Tokyo turns its phone booths into free Wi-Fi hotspots, and here’s how to use them
Studio Ghibli adds new My Neighbour Totoro 2026 Corn Gift to its anime store for Mother’s Day
Japan now has a special desk for people who work at home with a pet cat[Photos]
Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Train station platform ramen store closes its doors on half a century of history in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
Studio Ghibli releases Catbus pullback keychain that runs like the anime character
Krispy Kreme releases Super Mario doughnuts in Japan for a limited time
Japanese onsen egg maker from 100-yen store Daiso needs to be on your shopping list
Nine great places to see spring flowers in Japan, as chosen by travelers (with almost no sakura)
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
Kiki’s Deliver Service heroine gets new design from Spy x Family artist for 40th anniversary
This overlooked neighborhood east of Tokyo is awesome in many ways, left us with just one regret
Famous Tokyo cherry blossom spot installs view-blocking screens to fight overcrowding[Video]
Oodles of noodles! Udon chain pays homage to all 47 prefectures of Japan with 47 dishes【Photos】
Hinamatsuri Pikachu kimono couple plushie on the way to celebrate Japan’s Doll Festival【Photos】
This Shinjuku capsule hotel offers a capsule, a fancy bath, and a sauna for about 3,000 yen per night
Hayao Miyazaki gifts autographed Ghibli anime cel to president of France[Photo]
Japanese high school girl uniform swimsuit makes gyaru student cosplay dreams come true
Okonomiyaki taiyaki: Sweet and savoury combination confuses the senses
Tokyo’s best museum for foreign travelers finally reopens after being closed for four years
Fatal stabbing at Pokémon Center in Tokyo reignites concern over rising stalking cases in Japan
Visiting Japan’s “Mt. Terror,” said to be the closest point to the afterlife【Photos】
We try blue beer made with drift ice from Hokkaido