Large metal sphere found in Japan on Enshu Beach.Photo: NHK World News/Twitter
Not everybody can have all the answers all the time.
AstrophysicistNeil deGrasse Tysonwas recently asked if he could shed some light on the large metal sphere thatmysteriously turned up on a beach in Japan, puzzling authorities and leading to some far-fetched theories about what it could be.
Without mincing words, he told CNN’sDon Lemonon Thursday that he didn’t have any inside information.
“I have no idea,” he said, laughing as he added, “Why does everybody have to know everything at all times?”
As for some of the possible explanations, he said that “it could be a hoax, somebody put it in the ocean and had it wash up” — or, he joked, it could be “Godzilla’s egg.”
Jason LaVeris / Getty Images
“I’d be delighted when we learn what it is,” he added, warning that unfortunately, the truth may not be that entertaining. “People’s imaginations just run wild, and that’s fun, that makes great fiction and great science fiction stories. But usually it’s something less interesting.”
However, officials quickly determined that there wasno danger of it exploding— or being tied to espionage, according toThe Guardian.
Although officials in Japan have yet to provide a definitive answer to the mystery, in the words of one expert who talked toThe New York Times, “it’s just a normal buoy.”
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However, one thing’s for certain: the metal ball isn’t going to stick around.
The sphere has since beenremoved from the beachand is currently being stored locally, according to the BBC.
As for its future, “the ball is going to be scrapped eventually,” a local official told theTimeson Friday.
source: people.com
