The Antarctic Godzilla (南極ゴジラ, Nankyoku Gojira) is a nickname given to an enormous cryptid sighted by the crew of the Soya, a Japanese research vessel in Lützow-Holm Bay, Antarctica, on February 13, 1958. This massive sea creature has been compared to the fictional Godzilla due to its size and appearance. The sighting was documented in the 1959 book 南極輸送記 ("Antarctic Transport"), by Mitsuji Matsumoto, captain of the Soya.
Despite its name, the Antarctic Godzilla appeared to be a large mammal, not a reptile.
Sighting[]
On February 13, 1958, at about 7:00 p.m., the crew of the Soya , including the captain, were relaxing on the bridge of the ship when a huge black object appeared on the surface of the sea 300 meters away.
At first some thought it might be an oil drum abandoned by a vessel ahead of them, but they soon realized that an oil drum could not possibly stand perpendicular to the sea surface in a wind speed of 7 to 8 meters. As everyone looked on, this object turned toward Soya .
The creature's entire body was covered with approximately 10 cm of dark brown body hair.
The head was about 70 to 80 centimeters long and roughly shaped like a cow or horse, the top of the creature's head was round and monkey-like, and the body hair on the head appeared to be bobbed hair style. The creature's eyes were large and its ears pointed.
The engineer who observed this creature more closely discovered that it had a sebire (Japanese term for the dorsal plates/spikes of a monster or the dorsal fins of a fish or whale) on its back. He also analyzed the creature as terrestrial based on the way its body hair grew.
Some books have included statements such as 'The creature had a four-meter long neck' or 'Behind the head was a long torso, over 10 meters long.’
The creature had been in sight for approximately 30 seconds, and the chief engineer rushed to his room to retrieve his camera, but he was too late.
Related sightings: 1935, New Zealand[]
After witnessing the Antarctic Godzilla, Mitsuji Matsumoto thought it might be related to a strange creature he saw in New Zealand in 1935. He was visiting New Zealand on a merchant marine school training voyage when a biology professor at The University of Auckland told him, "I'll show you the rarest thing in the world," and led him to a basement.
In the basement to which he was led, there was a box about 60 centimeters long with a wire mesh, which contained a stone and a strange creature. Matsumoto was able to get a good look at it when the professor took the creature out and placed it on his arm. The creature was 30 cm in length, brownish-brown in color, similar to a newt, and had a serrated dorsal fin or dorsal plate growing on its body. The creature also had something that looked like hair.
The professor explained the organism to Matsumoto, but he could not communicate well because of the language difference, and he was not interested enough to understand much of what was being said.
The professor wrote down the scientific name of the organism and handed it to Matsumoto, who took a photograph of it, but he subsequently lost both the note and the photograph.
Related sightings: 1950, Antarctic Ocean[]
On February 22 or 23, 1950, the Daiichi Nisshinmaru whaling expedition, sent by a company called Taiyou Fisheries, saw something strange in the Antarctic Ocean.
At about 6:00 a.m., the helmsman spotted a strange creature 80 meters forward on the port side, with its head sticking out 1.5 meters from the sea. He informed the second mate and the radio chief, who were also at the same location, who also saw the same thing. It had a face resembling a turtle without a beard, and a neck like a four-dart barrel that was large in relation to the head. It was covered with dark brown body hair with yellow patterns, similar to that of a zebra. It repeatedly dived and reappeared every minute or two.
The radio chief drew a sketch of the creature and showed it to the crew members who had not seen it at breakfast, but none of them knew anything about it.
Related sightings: 1957, Showa Station[]
The strange monsters were also spotted during the first Antarctic wintering expedition that began in February 1957.
According to the testimony of a member of the team in charge of geology and dog sledding named Toru Kikuchi, a huge Godzilla-like monster was seen approaching the Showa Station. However, measurements revealed that this object was not actually moving, and it was assumed that the rock wall appeared to be moving due to a mirage.
Biology[]
According to witnesses, this creature is a truly gigantic sea mammal. Its body is covered in hair, and its face has been likened to a cow or monkey with pointed ears. It also has a large saw-shaped dorsal plate or fin.
Online, people have drawn comparisons between the Antarctic Godzilla and the Ningen legend.
Explanations[]
Several Japanese books have published the possibility that Antarctic Godzilla's true identity was Desmostylia, like Desmostylus. Some books even refer to it as a Desmostylus sighting, without using the name Antarctic Godzilla. However, this theory is not plausible because the creatures lived a long time ago, fossils have only been found in the northern hemisphere, and the environment is not suitable for their survival.
For Japanese people, Antarctica is far from home, and in addition to the major restrictions placed on their diet and other aspects of life, detailed information about Antarctica is largely unknown to the average person.
Fear of stress and unknown environments and lack of knowledge can create such false sightings. For example, the case of the Antarctic Godzilla may have been a gross misidentification of a seal or whale companion that would be unthinkable in a normal state of mind.
Gallery[]
Sources and other informations[]
- Book : 山口敏太郎, 天野ミチヒロ（2007）『本当にいる日本・世界の「未知生物」案内 』ISBN 978-4773003642
- https://web-mu.jp/paranormal/634/
- https://web-mu.jp/column/363/
- https://web-mu.jp/history/18173/
- https://mnsatlas.com/?p=5013&=1
- https://www.asagei.com/excerpt/323434
- https://tabi-labo.com/302530/wdt-antarctic-godzilla
- https://npn.co.jp/article/detail/6557789
- https://www.tokyo-sports.co.jp/articles/-/7063?page=1