Balloon Paranoia Much? Mystery Orb On Japanese Beach Sparks Wild Theories

It was certainly not the usual driftwood or clumps of seeweed that caught the attention of beachgoers on Enshuhama Beach, in the coastal city of Hamamatsu, Japan, a few days ago.

A mysterious beige sphere, estimated to be 5 feet in diameter, was reported on by a local broadcaster on February 18. Soon, people outfitted in helmets and hazmat suits cordoned off the area, with an X-ray carried out by a bomb squad that was swiftly called in. The team determined that the spherical metal object was not explosive, but its origins continue to baffe authorities and experts.

Timing, of course, is everything. The baffling discovery comes amid a 'UFO' and 'spy balloon' craze unleashed by a string of events earlier in the month. Early February saw the Pentagon's downing of a Chinese balloon over its airspace, which the US claimed was a spy device. Beijing had vehemently denied this, saying it was a civilian airship engaged in scientific research. This was followed by the subsequent downings of three additional unidentified "objects." North Korea's recent missile activity had also set Japanese authorities on edge.

Hence the torrent of speculation online over Japan's mystery ball. On the internet, users had a field day, with wild theories ranging from "something from outer space" to a World War 2 mine, or even a gigantic fictional reptile monster egg.

Even handlers of a Japanese mascot named Chiitan went on Twitter to write “It could be me.”

Some had suggested it was a "mooring buoy" and that opinion later appeared to prevail among experts.

Hamamatsu's local civil engineering office made a statement to the effect that it "considers it to be a foreign-made buoy".

The metal ball has since been removed from the beach, with Hiroyuki Yagi, an official at Shizuoka Prefecture’s River and Coastal Management Bureau, telling media that, "the ball is going to be scrapped eventually." He added that the authorities had assigned a local company to hold on to it for now.