Blog Post: Unraveling the Kera UFO Incident: Japan’s Cosmic Mystery

By Juniper Ravenwood

The Night That Changed Kera Forever

In the quiet rice fields of Kera, Kochi City, Japan, on August 25, 1972, a group of young boys stumbled into a mystery that would haunt them for decades. The Kera UFO Incident, often compared to the infamous Roswell crash, began when 13-year-old Michio Seo spotted a small, metallic object—about six inches wide, shaped like a hat, and glowing an eerie blue—darting over a rice paddy. Its movements were unlike anything earthly, zigzagging with the agility of a bat chasing prey. What followed was a series of encounters that defy explanation, blending childhood curiosity with cosmic enigma.

A UFO in Their Hands

Michio rallied his friends—Hiroshi Mori, Yasuo Fujimoto, Katsuoka Kojima, and another boy—and together they tracked the object. In a moment of bravery (or recklessness), they captured it using a bucket. The object was heavy, about 1.3 kilograms, with a flat bottom etched with cryptic designs: waves, birds, and what some describe as a trident or flower. Through its 37 small holes, the boys glimpsed what looked like electronic components, and when shaken, it rattled as if alive. They took photographs—grainy, haunting images that still circulate online—and sketched its strange markings. But this was no ordinary find. The object seemed to have a will of its own, vanishing from under pillows only to reappear by a road, or disappearing entirely while Hiroshi biked home with it. Witnesses, including parents, confirmed its glow and flight, cementing its place in paranormal lore.

Echoes in Time

The Kera Incident didn’t fade away. In 1973, radio host Tsutomu Seki and Nippon Television’s Junichi Yaoi investigated, finding the boys’ stories consistent and compelling. Fast-forward to 2007, when the Japan Space Phenomena Society, led by Kazuo Hayashi, reinterviewed the now-adult witnesses. Their accounts hadn’t wavered. Even more chilling, a 1976 sighting by 9-year-old Sachiko Oyama in a nearby village echoed the boys’ experience. She saw a yellow, glowing object descend into a grove, pulse with light, spin, and vanish into the sky. Hayashi theorized these objects might be interdimensional, slipping into our reality by accident—a thought that sends shivers down the spine.

The Skeptic’s Shadow

Not everyone is convinced. Researcher Tatsuya Honjo suggests the object was a cast-iron ashtray, common in 1970s Japan, with similar wave and bird designs. But how does a heavy ashtray hover, glow, or disappear? The photographs, sketches, and consistent testimonies—spanning over 50 years—challenge this explanation. While the skeptic’s view adds intrigue, the Kera Incident’s eerie details suggest something far stranger than a discarded household item.

A Message From Beyond?

The Kera UFO Incident remains an open wound in the world of the paranormal. The object’s intricate markings—waves, birds, a trident—feel like a code we haven’t cracked. Were they a message from another world, a glitch in reality, or something else entirely? The boys, now men, and Sachiko Oyama stand by their stories, their lives forever marked by that summer in Kera. As we explore these shadows, we’re left to wonder: what else is out there, watching, waiting, just beyond the frequency of our understanding?

Signed,

Juniper Ravenwood