Mysterious giant sphere that washed up on Japanese beach has been removed

A large metal sphere has mysteriously washed up on a beach in Japan and officials seem to have no clue what it is.

The ball washed up on the Hamamatsu beach at a time of heightened panic in Japan, what with North Korea's recent missile activity.

Officials were so cautious of the mysterious five foot wide sphere that a bomb squad was deployed to check it out.

The area around the sphere has been cordoned off and X-ray exams were conducted, but authorities uncovered very little - other than it wasn't a threat.

The peculiar sphere appears to be hollow and sand-coloured according to investigators, though that seems to be almost all they can determine for now.

NHK World News

Officials in Hamamatsu has since confirmed that the ball has been removed and will be stored 'for a certain period of time' before it'll be 'disposed of'.

"I think everyone in Hamamatsu City was worried and curious about what it was about, but I'm relieved that the work is over," Japanese media were told by officials.

Speaking to Japanese broadcaster NHK, one local man claims the mysterious orb has been sitting on the beach for over a month, and was surprised that officials were only taking interest now.

"I tried to push it, but it wouldn't budge," he told reporters.

BBC

Locals have complained on social media about the dramatic reaction to the mysterious object.

"OMG! It's a steel mooring buoy people. I'm embarrassed to be Japanese," tweeted one unconcerned person.

"I can't believe officials from a country surrounded by ocean don't recognise a ball buoy," wrote a second.

On Wednesday, China and Japan held their first security talks in four years, according to BBC News, with Japan expressing concern over the sudden appearance of unidentified objects.

Between heightened fears surrounding North Korea's ballistic missile tests and the sudden appearance of China's supposed spy balloons, it's no wonder why Japanese officials are so concerned.

The US has blamed China for the appearance of mysterious flying objects in its skies in recent weeks, though Beijing has denied allegations of espionage.

US Department of Defense

Chinese officials have claimed the balloon was a weather monitoring device which was blown off course.

It was first spotted over Alaska's Aleutian Islands before being seen again above Montana, and the balloon was later shot down over the Atlantic.

The Japanese government has also seen its share of unidentified flying objects over its territorial skies in recent years, which were 'strongly suspected' to have been Chinese, though Beijing has also denied these allegations.