The UFO Phenomenon

Mysterious town in Japan is obsessed with UFOs and aliens

By T.K. Randall
January 17, 2022 ·  15 comments

It would be fair to say that Iino, with its abandoned buildings and roads that lead to nowhere, has seen better days - however there is one subject that continues to put this quaint little town on the map.

Stories of UFO sightings and close encounters with otherworldly visitors have frequented the town for decades - so much so that statues of UFOs can be found all along its streets and even its official mascot is a small white alien piloting a golden flying saucer.

UFO researcher Tsugio Kinoshita, who has spent years investigating the phenomenon, claims that he saw his first UFO in 1972 when hiking in Fukushima prefecture with some friends.

"This thing stuck out in front of me," he told VICE. "Starting and stopping in the blue sky.""Then all of a sudden, it was gone."

When the Japanese government launched new protocols to investigate the UFO phenomenon in 2020, Iino opened up its first ever lab dedicated to observing UFOs in the skies over the area.

Sadly, though, with its rapidly declining population (especially following the Fukushima nuclear disaster), there is a risk that the town could one day end up completely abandoned.

If so, it will be a sad end to one of UFOlogy's most intriguing curiosities.

Source: Vice.com | Comments (15)

Tags: UFO, Japan