Welcome to Chiba - Welcome to Japan

Most visitors to Japan arrive at Narita Airport, which is located in Chiba. More and more of these visitors are discovering that Chiba is more than just the gateway to Japan, it's a richly fascinating region I its own right-a region of fine beaches, beautiful countryside, wildlife preserves, ancient temple towns and ultra-modern cities. And a warm welcome for guests from overseas.

Solar Weather Forecasters

The sun provides us with warmth and light, but solar flares erupting from its surface can cause havoc with earth's vital satellites and communications systems. Japan's Communications Research Laboratory is one of the small number of organizations issuing daily space weather forecasts based on data from an international network of satellites and observatories.

Paper and Light

The city of Mino is the home of the Japanese craft paper known as washi. Part of Japanese daily life for over 1300 years, this strong, beautiful handmade paper is now a favorite medium for artists and designers. Each autumn, Mino holds an outdoor paper lantern exhibition, showcasing hundreds of growing washi lanterns in many creative designs.

Shinkansen Safety - Behind the Scenes

For 40 years and billions of passengers, the Shinkansen bullet trains have maintained a superb record for safety and punctuality. They achieve this while traveling at speeds up to 300 kilometer per hour thanks to continually upgraded advanced systems for inspection, maintenance and control. We peek behind the scene s to see the Shinkansen safety systems at work.