March 3, 2008
The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology
During the ongoing research by the Research Vessel NATSUSHIMA on the collision between MSDF DDG ATAGO and a fish boat SEITOKU MARU, two objects which were spotted and press released on February 26 and March 2, 2008, have been retrieved by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC; Mr. Yasuhiro Kato, President) under the direction of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) at the request of the Ministry of Defense.
JAMSTEC provided the information immediately to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and we heard that the MEXT provided the information to the Crisis Center in the Prime Minister’s Office and the Japan Coast Guard.
Fig.1 Research Area
: location of the object spotted and filmed
: research area
Photograph 1:
Image of on-board display screen taken by a digital camera
(North Latitude: 34.31 East Longitude:139.49 Water Depth 1,844m )
Photograph 2:
Image of on-board display screen taken by a digital camera
(North Latitude: 34.31 East Longitude:139.49 Water Depth 1,842m )