Japan's Environment Ministry has decided to establish an expert panel early next year to discuss how to deal with possibly toxic compounds detected near US military bases in the country.

The panel, made up of experts in public health and other fields, is expected to decide domestic targets to keep concentrations of the organofluorine compounds PFOS and PFOA at low levels. The experts will also consider ways to monitor water quality.

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force has carried out a drill to deploy ground-based PAC-3 interceptor missiles near a nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture.

The exercise was conducted on Monday along the coast in the town of Ohi, where Kansai Electric Power Company's Ohi nuclear power plant is located. It was the first time a drill involving the PAC-3 system was carried out in a municipality hosting a nuclear power plant.

This year has seen a record high number of days that Chinese government ships have sailed just outside Japan's territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.

The Japan Coast Guard said that as of 9:00 a.m. on Monday, four Chinese vessels were sailing in waters off Kubashima, one of the Senkakus. The area is in the contiguous zone just outside of Japan's territorial waters.

A plane flew over coastal areas of eastern Hokkaido on Wednesday carrying 30 Japanese people who were praying for the souls of ancestors buried on Russian-controlled islands claimed by Japan.

The flight was arranged after the coronavirus pandemic led to the cancellation of programs to allow trips to the islands without visas and to visit ancestors' graves there.

Japan's Meteorological Agency reports Tropical Storm Dolphin has formed south of the archipelago and is tracking north.

As of noon Monday, Dolphin had a central atmospheric pressure of 998 hectopascals, and was packing maximum winds of over 70 kilometers per hour near its center.

Powerful typhoon Maysak is expected to approach the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa and the Amami region in Kagoshima Prefecture between Monday night and Tuesday.

Weather officials say the developing typhoon is moving north over waters south of Okinawa.

Music fans have had a rare opportunity to enjoy a live concert during the coronavirus outbreak at a drive-in festival in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo.

Six groups performed at Sunday's festival in Nagara Town that was organized by an event-planning firm in Tokyo.

Japan's Coast Guard says Chinese patrol ships have been spotted just outside Japanese territorial waters in the East China Sea for 100 straight days.

Coast guard officials say four Chinese patrol vessels were navigating in the contiguous zone outside the territorial waters near the Senkaku Islands at 9 a.m. on Wednesday.

A hospital in Sagamihara City near Tokyo says one member of staff is confirmed to have the new coronavirus.

The hospital said on its website that the worker had been treating a resident of Kanagawa Prefecture who died last week.

The current Nissan 370Z has been on life support for a while now, but interest in classic Z cars remains strong. Witness the mind-bending price recently achieved for a pristine 1971 240Z that sold last month on Bring a Trailer. After the first-generation cars, arguably the next-most-appreciated Z car is the Z32 generation that debuted with the 1990 model year. This example of a first-year Z32, which crosses the block at RM Sotheby's Amelia Island sale next month, could set a new benchmark for values of this model.

Besides being a first-year example, this 300ZX is also the desirable two-seat body style and is powered by the twin-turbo version of Nissan's DOHC 3.0-liter VG30 V6, making 300 horsepower. A five-speed stick and four-wheel steering complete the mechanical picture.

The governments of Japan and the United States will consider how to cooperate to deal with toxic chemicals detected in high levels around US bases in Japan.

Organic fluorine compounds, such as PFOS, have been detected near US bases in the southern prefecture of Okinawa and Tokyo's Yokota Air Base. The chemicals have been proved toxic in tests using animals.