The Miyagi prefectural police also flew a helicopter to check on the object traveling at more than 2,000 meters above the ground but have yet to determine its origin and identity.

“We just have to keep our eyes on where it’s going,” a police official said. The police lost the exact location of the object in the evening after clouds blocked them from tracking it.

The transport ministry’s office at Sendai airport said there had been no requests for flying an aerial vehicle as per aviation law.

“As it is not on any flight paths, it will not impact aircraft operations, but we will continue to keep an eye on it,” an official at the office said.

On Twitter, one user asked “Could it be a UFO?” while another said, “It looks like a hot-air balloon.”