The giant metal ball baffled the authorities in Japan.
A giant metal ball that washed up on a Japanese beach on Tuesday may be a piece of common marine equipment, according to a report in New York Times (NYT). The rusty yellowish sphere, about the size of a wrecking ball had created panic among authorities and locals in Hamamatsu, with some suggesting it could be ''Godzilla's egg'' while others believed it's an espionage device like the ''spy balloon'' that was spotted above the US earlier this month. The ball was discovered by a local at Enshu Beach who contacted the authorities.
After its discovery, officials in helmets and hazmat suits cordoned off the area, which piqued interest about what the object really is.
Bomb experts were called to the beach to investigate the strange ball. The area was later evacuated.
However, after conducting X-ray test, the police confirmed it was not an explosive, the NYT report said. They added it's a large piece of scrap metal.
"The ball is going to be scrapped eventually," Hiroyuki Yagi, an official at Shizuoka Prefecture's River and Coastal Management Bureau, told the outlet on Friday.
Marine experts, meanwhile, said the big ball is similar to a steel buoys used to guide mariners or mark positions in the ocean, according to Metro.
The sphere, measured about 1.5 metres in diametre, according to Japanese media.
The unusual discovery gained international attention in view of American fighter jets shooting down a Chinese balloon over US airspace.
The Americans said it was a spy balloon, but China denied the allegations saying the inflatable was merely meant for civilian research.