Metal sphere dubbed ‘Godzilla Egg’ washed onto Japanese beach

A mysterious metal sphere that washed ashore on a beach in Japan has left residents and authorities wondering what it could be. The sphere, approximately 1.5 metres wide, was spotted by a local man in the coastal city of Hamamatsu, who alerted the police after noticing the unusual object on Enshuhama beach.

Authorities came to check it out and promptly called in the bomb squad to investigate the unidentified sphere that has been dubbed the Godzilla Egg. The area was cordoned off and Japanese public broadcaster NHK aired footage of two officials on the beach examining the rusty metal sphere.

After subjecting the enigmatic sphere to an X-ray examination, officials have determined that it is not an explosive and does not pose any danger. Still, authorities will take it off the beach as the source of the object remains unknown.

Photographs of the object have been sent to the Self-Defence Forces and Japan Coast Guard for further examination.

Area residents in Hamamatsu say they think the unidentified floating object is from outer space and have referred to it as a “mooring buoy” or Godzilla Egg. One person claimed that he’s seen the sphere sitting on the beach for at least a month and even tried to move it but was unable to.

Another possible explanation that has social media commenters abuzz is the idea that it could be more Chinese spyware. Japan said it “strongly suspected” several Chinese spy balloons had been spotted over its territory in recent years.

Japan raised concerns to China on Wednesday regarding alleged surveillance balloons observed over its airspace on three separate occasions since 2019, although Beijing denies the accusations of espionage. The Chinese and Japanese defence ministers conducted their first high-level security discussion in four years. They agreed to collaborate on establishing a communication hotline this spring.

The appearance of the sphere coincides with objects in various locations being spotted after the US shot down what it said was a spy balloon earlier this month. That balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina and recovered in the Atlantic Ocean. It had been seen crossing American airspace across several states as the US government followed its movement.