The Japanese forestry technique for growing trees, daisugi, goes as far back to the 14th century.
The 600-year-old technique involves pruning a tree’s branches to construct a stable platform that supports producing perfectly straight lumber on top.
The ancient method, therefore, creates wood without cutting down trees. However, the ingenious forestry technique is no longer in use.
Here’s the last island you’d ever want to be stranded on.
This uninhabited volcanic rock formation is part of a 552 square mile Russian island called Urup, which means ‘salmon trout’ in Ainu.
Urup island sits south of the Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean.
One can imagine this upstanding volcanic plug off the coast of Urup appearing in a future James Bond film.
According to the Neatline antique map collection website, Urup used to be known as “Company’s Land” as discovered by Maarten Vries of Dutch East India Company in 1643. Vries map (see below) is considered the westernmost region of America, a widely held view in the 17th and 18th centuries.
They look like flying saucers or marshmallows.
These UFO-looking lens-shaped clouds called lenticular clouds often develop near the peaks of mountains, as in the case of Mount Fuji in Japan.
Lenticular clouds form when strong winds force air up and over a topographic barrier such as a mountain. Once the rising air hits the obstructive peak, an “eddie”, and then mixes with the upper-wind, the air deflects the mountain wind downward to create the lampshade looking clouds.
Stacked lenticular clouds clicked over Mt.Fuji, Japan pic.twitter.com/BgzXKZz4DW
— Black Hole (@konstructivizm) August 7, 2020
Here’s a collection of lenticular clouds forming in different settings — over buildings, volcanoes, and grassy fields. You love to see it!
Minimalism. Sunset lenticular cloud over Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy today 5pm, Dec 27th. Thanks to Gabriele Acerboni for the report – posted with permission. pic.twitter.com/PWwqDhhtOu
— severe-weather.EU (@severeweatherEU) December 27, 2019
Flying saucer, marshmallow, or bean pod? A pink #UFO-shaped cloud appeared in #Beijing on Thursday morning, surprising commuters. The meteorological service explains that this was actually a lenticular cloud. (via Beijing Daily) https://t.co/3sl64HyD1K pic.twitter.com/yAwdQ5s6jh
— The Paper 澎湃新闻 (@thepapercn) December 19, 2019
Lenticular cloud above a wheat field down in the deepest south west of Scotland @BBCWthrWatchers @BBCScotWeather thanks for the EP @JudithRalston pic.twitter.com/XJ11OQyuBW
— Kathleen Cumming (@ColfinCaptures) July 16, 2019
Lenticular clouds are sometimes mistaken for UFOs, given their unusual shape.
— Quite nteresting (@qikipedia) June 7, 2020
(Image: Omnisource5) pic.twitter.com/zYsN2QrRkA
James Mollison of TOPIC ventured into one of Tokyo’s animal cafes where you can sip your coffee with your animal of choice (cats, dogs, and rabbits). But this coffee shop was a little different.
Tokyo’s Pakuchi Bar is apparently one of eight owl cafes in the big city. The owner, Tomo Nanaka, owns 30 of them which she allows in public on the weekends and on special holidays. Even more, she’s named them after musicians and bands.
Below are some of my favorite. From left to right: Kurt Cobain, The Chemical Brothers, Beck, and The Cure.
(All images via James Mollison)
As Typhoon Hagibis approached Tokyo on Saturday, residents captured images of an unusually pink skyline that gradually turned a spooky purple.
While beautiful the vivid skies augured what would become a dangerous storm that unleashed heavy rain and strong wind. A magnitude 5.7 earthquake also shook Tokyo shortly after.
NPR reports 19 dead and 16 missing in Tokyo and its surrounding prefectures thus far.
The colorful skies are a result of a process called “scattering,” where the sunlight shining down on Earth gets kicked around the moisture in the air giving rise to the pink and purple hues.
The typhoon left Tokyo late Saturday, leaving the city with a crystal clear blue sky on Sunday morning.
Day after the typhoon, the sky was clear and we can see the stars so clearly even though the usual lights in Tokyo would have covered it all.
— ⭐️TrAcE ⭐️ 2020.10.07 (@g_tracenpandas) October 13, 2019
It almost feels like Mother Nature was doing her job once again. It was scary last night but today is peaceful once again. ☀️✨🌈 pic.twitter.com/VQ5cHAMSUc