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July 01, 2026
 

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OCEANS

A television screen shows a news report on patrol and law‑enforcement operations around Taiwan conducted by the China Coast Guard, at a restaurant in Beijing in late December.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Jun 30, 2026
More than a boundary: Why Japan-Philippines maritime talks matter for China
Beijing says the talks infringe on maritime rights it claims through Taiwan and sees discussions as part of a broader effort by Manila and Tokyo to deepen strategic coordination.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks at a government meeting on ocean policy on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 30, 2026
Japan to revise its Arctic policy as region’s geopolitical importance grows
The Arctic region is becoming increasingly important for national security as China and Russia intensify their activities.
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET
Jun 28, 2026
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
With research on microplastics and the health of coral reefs, the crew of the Tara are making a difference as the world’s environmental issues mount.
In the fiscal year that began in April, Tepco plans to release a total of about 62,400 tons of treated water in eight rounds.
BUSINESS
Jun 20, 2026
Tepco ends second round of fiscal 2026 treated water release
In the just ended round, about 7,900 tons of water containing small amounts of radioactive tritium was discharged.
"I’ve been doing this for 40 years and it just keeps getting worse,” Bunyut Chaosamut said. "We are sea people; we can’t just quit and start growing rice or planting rubber trees.”
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
May 22, 2026
Southeast Asia’s fishermen are being pushed to the brink by fuel costs
High fuel prices linked to the Iran war are hitting Southeast Asia’s seafood industry hard, forcing boats to stay ashore and raising costs across the supply chai
Ndey Ndiaye (center) with her grandsons Fallou (left) and Bara (right) at their home in Mbour, Senegal. Ndey is raising her two grandsons after losing her daughter when the boat she was traveling in capsized trying to reach Europe.
WORLD / Society
May 15, 2026
Senegal’s children mourn in silence when migrant parents disappear
The number of such dead, missing and their children is at least in the thousands in Senegal in recent years, an advocate has said.
Samples of rare earth-bearing mud extracted from the seabed around Minamitorishima island in February are examined.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 7, 2026
Japan tackles challenges of seafloor rare earth mining, eyeing economic security
In February, Japan succeeded in a test collection of rare earth-bearing mud from a depth of 6,000 meters below sea level near the remote Japanese island of Minamitorishima.
In an undated image provided by Project CETI, the birth of a sperm whale.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 31, 2026
Scientists filmed a whale birth. The surprise: Mom had many helpers.
The findings add to a growing body of research indicating that humans are not the only species in which mothers receive some form of help during and after birth.
Scientists look at footage of old munitions on the seabed near northern Germany's Kiel Bay, aboard the scientific research vessel Alkor, belonging to the Kiel-based GEOMAR oceanographic research center.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 30, 2026
Germany’s WWII munitions a toxic legacy on Baltic Sea floor
Scientists warn that rockets, artillery shells and bombs will release contaminants into the marine environment as salt water corrodes their metal casings.
Tsunamis are among the strongest and most destructive natural forces, with powerful waves radiating outward in all directions from a point of origin.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 27, 2026
Satellite observations offer insight into a tsunami’s early stages
The researchers said the findings may help improve understanding of future tsunamis and earthquakes at subduction zones.
Arctic sea ice reached its lowest level ever recorded, a leading U.S. climate observatory has said.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Mar 27, 2026
Arctic sea ice at lowest level ever this winter
This year’s maximum ice level was reached on March 15 — a week earlier than last year.
A nuclear-powered Type 094A Jin-class ballistic missile submarine of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy in waters during a military display in the South China Sea in April 2018.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 24, 2026
China is mapping the ocean floor as it prepares for submarine warfare with the U.S.
Beijing has been monitoring operation across the Pacific, Indian and Arctic oceans.
Concerns are mounting in the Cape Erimo area of Hokkaido, where Kuril harbor seals have been damaging fishing nets and eating catches.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Mar 16, 2026
Ministry turns to acoustic devices to stop seals from stealing fish in Hokkaido
Authorities hope the measure will protect the local fishing industry and address, in a responsible way, the problem of seals stealing salmon and mackerel from fishing nets.
About a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz, where traffic has dropped by 97% since the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran began on Feb. 28, according to United Nations data.
BUSINESS / Economy / EXPLAINER
Mar 14, 2026
Why is it so easy for Iran to shut the Strait of Hormuz?
About a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes through the strait, where traffic has dropped by 97% since the Iran conflict began.
The Chikyu, the deep sea drilling vessel operated by the Japan Agency for Marine Earth-Science and Technology, has been on a mission to pull metal-bearing mud from the seabed.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Feb 12, 2026
Japan steps up deep-sea mining plan to cut rare-earth dependence
An ambitious initiative to accelerate a decade-old plan has been given extra impetus by the country’s drive to cut reliance on Chinese supply.
A person walks on the shore as a small iceberg floats in the sea near Nuuk, Greenland, on Wednesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Feb 5, 2026
Greenland shatters temperature record, redrawing economy from fishing to minerals
The island experienced its warmest January on record this year, with a rate of warming four times faster than the global average.
OceanXplorer's Neptune submersible is designed for scientific collection and observation.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Jan 27, 2026
‘So little we know’: In submersibles revealing the deep sea
Large parts of the ocean, particularly the deep sea floor, are not even mapped, let alone explored.
A Chinese flag is seen near a fishing boat off the coast of Qingdao, China, following an oil spill in the Yellow Sea in April 2021.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 17, 2026
China bids to host secretariat of new high seas treaty
The surprise bid underscores Beijing’s desire to have greater influence over global environmental governance.
Japan's drilling-equipped research vessel Chikyu departs from Shimizu port in Shizuoka Prefecture on Monday to conduct a test recovery of mineral-rich mud near Minamitori Island, marking the world’s first attempt to continuously lift rare earth seabed sludge from a depth of about 6 kilometers onto a ship.
JAPAN
Jan 12, 2026
Japan sets sail on rare earth hunt as China tightens supply
A mining ship has departed for a remote coral atoll to probe mud rich in critical minerals — 6 kilometers deep on the seabed.
A fishing boat sails out to sea in Tosa Bay off Kochi Prefecture in May 2022. As the planet warms, fish native to Japanese waters are swimming from south to north in pursuit of their desired temperatures.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Jan 11, 2026
How Japan’s warming seas are affecting livelihoods and culture
As climate change forces fish to migrate to cooler waters, culture and jobs are being left behind in their wake.
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.
Yen hits 40-year low against the dollar, breaking ¥162 level
Japan's currency broke ¥162 to the dollar on Tuesday in Tokyo.
Japan falls in gut-wrenching fashion as Brazil strikes late to win World Cup clash
Brazil's Gabriel Martinelli (right) shoots past Japan defenders Shogo Taniguchi (left) and Takehiro Tomiyasu to score in the second half of a match in the round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Houston on Monday.
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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