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Indonesia: Mount Sinabung Erupts in North Sumatra, Prompting Higher Alert Status

Mount Sinabung erupted in Karo, North Sumatra, on Monday, August 31, sending a column of black ash roughly 3,500 meters into the sky. The Geological Agency raised the alert status from Level II (Caution) to Level III (Alert). There were no immediate reports of casualties, evacuations, or flight disruptions.

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Japan: Fire Engulfs Shopping Arcade Near Ise Grand Shrine, Hundreds Evacuated

A large fire broke out on Monday afternoon, August 31, at the Meirin shopping arcade in Ise, Mie Prefecture, located about 600 meters east of the Ise Grand Shrine's outer shrine, Geku, spreading to multiple buildings in the roughly 20-store district near Ujiyamada Station, though no injuries have been reported. Local authorities issued evacuation orders for 528 residents in 249 households, and about 280 homes lost power.

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Fire festival at foot of Mt. Fuji

Fire festival at foot of Mt. Fuji

A fire festival marking the end of the summer climbing season is held at the foot of Mt. Fuji in the Yamanashi Prefecture city of Fujiyoshida on Aug. 26, 2026. About 120 torches about 3 meters tall are lit along a way leading to a shrine during the festival, which dates back over 400 years.

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Fire festival at foot of Mt. Fuji

Fire festival at foot of Mt. Fuji

A fire festival marking the end of the summer climbing season is held at the foot of Mt. Fuji in the Yamanashi Prefecture city of Fujiyoshida on Aug. 26, 2026. About 120 torches about 3 meters tall are lit along a way leading to a shrine during the festival, which dates back over 400 years.

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Spain: Wildfire Threatens Homes in Madrid’s Sierra Suroeste Region

A wildfire near Aldea del Fresno in Madrid's Sierra Suroeste region prompted evacuations Wednesday, August 19, as winds pushed flames within 400 meters of homes, before being stabilized by evening with around 330 hectares burned.

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Indonesia: Thick Haze From Wildfires Reduces Visibility in Kalimantan

Thick haze from wildfires has cut visibility to just one to two meters in Sungai Tabuk, South Kalimantan, Indonesia, creating hazardous driving conditions as motorists navigate through the near-blinding smog. This video shows motorbike riders making their way as dense haze reduces visibility to just a couple of meters.

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Japan: Typhoon Chan-hom Topples Trees Across Tochigi Prefecture

Typhoon Chan-hom made landfall in southern Ibaraki Prefecture near Tokyo on Tuesday, August 11, bringing high winds that knocked down trees, left thousands of homes without power, and disrupted flights at Tokyo-area airports. Several people were injured in multiple prefectures, including Iwate, Ibaraki, and Tochigi. In Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, a large tree, roughly 1 meter in diameter and 18 meters tall, snapped at its base and blocked a road and sidewalk near JR Utsunomiya Station's west exit, apparently due to strong winds from the typhoon. No injuries were reported there, according to city officials and fire authorities.

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Japan: Ash Blankets Kagoshima City After Sakurajima Volcano Erupts 3

An eruption occurred on Sakurajima volcano in Kagoshima Saturday evening, August 8, sending an ash plume up to 2,200 meters into the air. The eruption sent a moderate amount of ash drifting toward Kagoshima city, turning the sky dark within minutes.

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Japan: Ash Blankets Kagoshima City After Sakurajima Volcano Erupts

An eruption occurred on Sakurajima volcano in Kagoshima Saturday evening, August 8, sending an ash plume up to 2,200 meters into the air. The eruption sent a moderate amount of ash drifting toward Kagoshima city, turning the sky dark within minutes.

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Japan: Ash Blankets Kagoshima City After Sakurajima Volcano Erupts 2

An eruption occurred on Sakurajima volcano in Kagoshima Saturday evening, August 8, sending an ash plume up to 2,200 meters into the air. The eruption sent a moderate amount of ash drifting toward Kagoshima city, turning the sky dark within minutes.

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China: Cat Climbs Ancient Xi’an City Wall, Rescued With Bedsheet

A calico cat scaled the ancient Xi'an City Wall in Shaanxi, China, on August 4, 2026, using gaps between the bricks to climb over ten meters up. When it got stuck on a ledge, locals below held a bedsheet as a safety net. The cat lost its grip and fell, landing safely and unharmed.

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Japan: Performers Balance Towering Lanterns at Akita Kanto Festival

The Akita Kanto Festival, one of the three major festivals in Japan's Tohoku region with roughly 270 years of history, opened Sunday, August 2, in central Akita City and runs through August 6. This year's event features 67 groups—38 neighborhood teams and 29 school and workplace teams—swaying 273 lantern-laden bamboo poles through the night sky in a prayer for a bountiful harvest, the poles representing rice stalks. The largest of the poles measure up to 12 meters long and weigh 50 kilograms, balanced skillfully by performers on their foreheads, palms, and other parts of the body.

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Guatemala: Fuego Volcano Eruption Triggers Red Alert and Mass Evacuations

Guatemala's Fuego volcano has prompted a red alert across the Sacatepéquez, Chimaltenango, and Escuintla regions, home to about 1.6 million people. Nearly 1,700 people have been evacuated since the volcano erupted Monday, sending pyroclastic flows, mudflows up to 7 kilometers long, and ash plumes over 5,000 meters high—affecting roughly 29,000 people.

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Japan: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival Lights Up Sky With 20,000 Shells 5

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival, one of Japan's three major fireworks displays, was held on Sunday and Monday, August 2 and 3, along the Shinano River in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture. The two-day event featured about 20,000 fireworks, including large traditional shells that bloomed into flowers roughly 650 meters wide.

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Japan: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival Lights Up Sky With 20,000 Shells 4

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival, one of Japan's three major fireworks displays, was held on Sunday and Monday, August 2 and 3, along the Shinano River in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture. The two-day event featured about 20,000 fireworks, including large traditional shells that bloomed into flowers roughly 650 meters wide.

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Japan: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival Lights Up Sky With 20,000 Shells

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival, one of Japan's three major fireworks displays, was held on Sunday and Monday, August 2 and 3, along the Shinano River in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture. The two-day event featured about 20,000 fireworks, including large traditional shells that bloomed into flowers roughly 650 meters wide.

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Japan: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival Lights Up Sky With 20,000 Shells 3

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival, one of Japan's three major fireworks displays, was held on Sunday and Monday, August 2 and 3, along the Shinano River in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture. The two-day event featured about 20,000 fireworks, including large traditional shells that bloomed into flowers roughly 650 meters wide.

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Japan: Nagaoka Fireworks Festival Lights Up Sky With 20,000 Shells 2

The Nagaoka Fireworks Festival, one of Japan's three major fireworks displays, was held on Sunday and Monday, August 2 and 3, along the Shinano River in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture. The two-day event featured about 20,000 fireworks, including large traditional shells that bloomed into flowers roughly 650 meters wide.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lanterns each more than 20 meters tall are paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

A doll-like lantern more than 20 meters tall is paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lanterns each more than 20 meters tall are paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lanterns each more than 20 meters tall are paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lanterns each more than 20 meters tall are paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

A doll-like lantern more than 20 meters tall is paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

Doll-like lantern parade in northeastern Japan

A doll-like lantern more than 20 meters tall is paraded on the opening day of the five-day Goshogawara Tachi Neputa festival in the northeastern Japan city of Goshogawara, Aomori Prefecture, on Aug. 4, 2026.

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Japan: Typhoon Dolphin Brings Powerful Winds and Outages to Ogasawara Islands 2

Powerful Typhoon Dolphin was making its closest approach to the Ogasawara Islands, located about 1,000 kilometers south of central Tokyo, on Tuesday, August 4, with maximum sustained winds near the center of 45 meters per second and maximum gusts of 60 meters per second, while power outages were reported on Chichijima and Hahajima.

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Japan: Typhoon Dolphin Brings Powerful Winds and Outages to Ogasawara Islands

Powerful Typhoon Dolphin was making its closest approach to the Ogasawara Islands, located about 1,000 kilometers south of central Tokyo, on Tuesday, August 4, with maximum sustained winds near the center of 45 meters per second and maximum gusts of 60 meters per second, while power outages were reported on Chichijima and Hahajima.

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Lake-jumping religious ritual

Lake-jumping religious ritual

A Buddhist monk jumps into Lake Biwa from a height of about 7 meters in the Shiga Prefecture city of Omihachiman, western Japan, on Aug. 1, 2026, as he completes 100 days of ascetic mountain training. The traditional ritual at Isaki-ji temple dates back nearly 1,000 years.

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Lake-jumping religious ritual

Lake-jumping religious ritual

A Buddhist monk jumps into Lake Biwa from a height of about 7 meters in the Shiga Prefecture city of Omihachiman, western Japan, on Aug. 1, 2026, as he completes 100 days of ascetic mountain training. The traditional ritual at Isaki-ji temple dates back nearly 1,000 years.

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[Breaking News]Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

NOSHIRO, Japan, July 13 Kyodo - The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency tests an RV-X prototype reusable rocket in Noshiro in Akita Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on July 11, 2026. The rocket landed successfully after reaching a maximum height of around 11 meters and moving about 16 meters horizontally in the 40-second test. (Kyodo)

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Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

Composite photo shows an RV-X prototype reusable rocket landing successfully after reaching a maximum height of around 11 meters and moving about 16 meters horizontally in the 40-second test, conducted by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency in Noshiro in Akita Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on July 11, 2026.

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Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency tests an RV-X prototype reusable rocket in Noshiro in Akita Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on July 11, 2026. The rocket landed successfully after reaching a maximum height of around 11 meters and moving about 16 meters horizontally in the 40-second test.

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Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

Japan tests reusable rocket prototype

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency tests an RV-X prototype reusable rocket in Noshiro in Akita Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on July 11, 2026. The rocket landed successfully after reaching a maximum height of around 11 meters and moving about 16 meters horizontally in the 40-second test.

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Japan: Powerful Typhoon Bavi Batters Okinawa Amid Storm Surge Warnings 6

Typhoon Bavi was battering Okinawa's Sakishima Islands on Saturday, July 11, with gusts of up to 42.7 meters per second recorded in Miyakojima. Seven people were injured by strong winds across the prefecture, and more than 22,000 homes lost power. Storm and high wave warnings remained in place across Okinawa, with authorities warning of landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.

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Japan: Powerful Typhoon Bavi Batters Okinawa Amid Storm Surge Warnings 5

Typhoon Bavi was battering Okinawa's Sakishima Islands on Saturday, July 11, with gusts of up to 42.7 meters per second recorded in Miyakojima. Seven people were injured by strong winds across the prefecture, and more than 22,000 homes lost power. Storm and high wave warnings remained in place across Okinawa, with authorities warning of landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.

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Japan: Powerful Typhoon Bavi Batters Okinawa Amid Storm Surge Warnings 4

Typhoon Bavi was battering Okinawa's Sakishima Islands on Saturday, July 11, with gusts of up to 42.7 meters per second recorded in Miyakojima. Seven people were injured by strong winds across the prefecture, and more than 22,000 homes lost power. Storm and high wave warnings remained in place across Okinawa, with authorities warning of landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.

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Japan: Powerful Typhoon Bavi Batters Okinawa Amid Storm Surge Warnings 3

Typhoon Bavi was battering Okinawa's Sakishima Islands on Saturday, July 11, with gusts of up to 42.7 meters per second recorded in Miyakojima. Seven people were injured by strong winds across the prefecture, and more than 22,000 homes lost power. Storm and high wave warnings remained in place across Okinawa, with authorities warning of landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.

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UK: Wildfire Breaks Out on Tintwistle Moor Near Glossop Amid Heatwave 2

A wildfire broke out on Tintwistle Moor, near Glossop, Derbyshire, on Thursday, June 25, affecting around 500 square meters of moorland and woodland amid the heatwave. Residents were urged to keep windows and doors shut and avoid the area.

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UK: Wildfire Breaks Out on Tintwistle Moor Near Glossop Amid Heatwave

A wildfire broke out on Tintwistle Moor, near Glossop, Derbyshire, on Thursday, June 25, affecting around 500 square meters of moorland and woodland amid the heatwave. Residents were urged to keep windows and doors shut and avoid the area.

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China: Tiny Rain Cloud Soaks Only Small Patch Street

An unusually localised rain shower fell on a small section of a blind path in Kunming, Yunnan, on June 20, 2026, while the surrounding pavement remained completely dry. The rainfall covered less than three square meters, creating a stark contrast between the wet patch and the dry ground nearby.

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Laos: Tourist Thrown and Lifted by Elephant Trunk at Luang Prabang

On June 14, 2026, a tourist visiting Luang Prabang encountered an unexpected event. As they attempted to mount an elephant, they were thrown to the ground by the elephant's trunk. The tourist was then lifted up by the elephant's trunk, walked a few meters, and gently set down in the grass.

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Kazakhstan: Hurricane-Force Winds Tear Through Aktobe, Leaving Trail of Destruction 2

A powerful storm swept through Aktobe, Kazakhstan on Saturday, June 21, with wind gusts reaching 30 meters per second, uprooting trees, tearing off rooftops, and damaging advertising structures across the city.

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Kazakhstan: Hurricane-Force Winds Tear Through Aktobe, Leaving Trail of Destruction

A powerful storm swept through Aktobe, Kazakhstan on Saturday, June 21, with wind gusts reaching 30 meters per second, uprooting trees, tearing off rooftops, and damaging advertising structures across the city.

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Spain: Sagrada Família Lit Up in Spectacular Light Show After Historic Tower Blessing

On Wednesday, June 10, Pope Leo XIV presided over a solemn Mass inside Sagrada Familia in Barcelona before stepping outside to bless the newly completed tower. Standing at 172.5 meters, the tower makes Gaudí's iconic basilica the tallest Catholic church in the world. More than 9,000 people attended, including Spain's King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. The ceremony concluded with a light show and drone display. The pope delivered the blessing from the Nativity facade and also spoke in Catalan.

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Japan: Typhoon Jangmi Batters Okinawa With Destructive Winds and Power Outages 2

Typhoon Jangmi (No. 6) made its closest approach to Okinawa's main island on Monday, June 1, with the southern part of the island entering the storm's danger zone. The storm brought wind gusts of up to 35.2 meters per second in Naha City and widespread power outages. All flights to and from Naha Airport were cancelled, while public transport, schools, and businesses were also shut for the day.

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Japan: Typhoon Jangmi Batters Okinawa With Destructive Winds and Power Outages 3

Typhoon Jangmi (No. 6) made its closest approach to Okinawa's main island on Monday, June 1, with the southern part of the island entering the storm's danger zone. The storm brought wind gusts of up to 35.2 meters per second in Naha City and widespread power outages. All flights to and from Naha Airport were cancelled, while public transport, schools, and businesses were also shut for the day.

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Japan: Typhoon Jangmi Batters Okinawa With Destructive Winds and Power Outages

Typhoon Jangmi (No. 6) made its closest approach to Okinawa's main island on Monday, June 1, with the southern part of the island entering the storm's danger zone. The storm brought wind gusts of up to 35.2 meters per second in Naha City and widespread power outages. All flights to and from Naha Airport were cancelled, while public transport, schools, and businesses were also shut for the day.

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China: Dog Runs 3,000-Meter Race Alongside Competitor in Inner Mongolia

On May 15, 2026, in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, a small dog stole the spotlight during a 3,000-meter race by running alongside a female competitor. As the pair neared the finish line, the dog's sprinting form drew particular attention from onlookers. According to reports, the girl regularly trains at the track and has been feeding the dog during her visits — a routine that appears to have earned her the dog's loyalty, prompting it to join her the moment it saw her run.

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Philippines: Lava Collapse Triggers Pyroclastic Flow at Mayon Volcano

Mayon Volcano in the Philippines generated a pyroclastic density current (PDC), locally known as "uson," along the Mi-isi Gully on Wednesday, May 13, with a volcanic plume rising to approximately 4,000 meters, as the volcano continued to show intensified magmatic unrest under Alert Level 3. Authorities reiterated that entry into the danger zone remained strictly prohibited, with residents advised to remain alert for possible evacuation.

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Huge carp streamer in eastern Japan

KAZO, Japan, May 3 Kyodo - Video taken from a Kyodo News helicopter shows a carp streamer, about 100 meters long and weighing around 330 kilograms, flying over the Tone River in the Saitama Prefecture city of Kazo, eastern Japan, on May 3, 2026, ahead of Children's Day on May 5. (Kyodo)

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