A mysterious metal sphere of unknown origin that looked like a giant ‘iron ball’ washed up on a beach in Japan, confused authorities and prompted officials to block off the area for investigation.
Authorities initially blocked off a 200-meter radius around the object due to fear of an explosion. Fortunately, reports eventually indicated there wasn’t a threat of an explosion, but the origin was still a mystery.
“‘At around 8:45 a.m. on February 21, a woman living nearby called the police on Enshuhama Beach in Nishi Ward, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, saying that there was something like a mine on the beach. When the police confirmed, they found a suspicious object like an iron ball with a diameter of about 1.5m,” according to a local new outlet.
“According to the police, the discovered suspicious object is considered to be made of iron because the surface is brown and rusty, and a part of the sphere protrudes. Due to the danger of explosions, we are sharing photos and information with the Self-Defense Forces and Japan Coast Guard, and are hurrying to identify suspicious objects,” they added.
The sphere is likely nothing dangerous, considering it looks a lot like a mooring buoy that typically have a metal shell and are used as an alternative to an anchor.