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Hiroshima prefecture is a popular travel destination in Japan, widely celebrated for its Unesco World Heritage Sites and delicacies such as Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes). However, it also bears a heavy past: the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum stands as a monument to the tragedy and devastation caused by the world's first atomic bomb, dropped on August 6 1945 during World War II.
The 75th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima takes place this August 6, but Japan’s travel restrictions due to the ongoing Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic have made it impossible for many people to visit the city and mark the occasion as planned. As a way to commemorate the anniversary while sustaining social distancing protocols, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum has partnered with international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) as well as Japanese and American artists to curate materials for a virtual tour of the museum so that people can still visit the site from home.
The online tour consists of 3D renderings of the museum and its artefacts, including everyday objects which survived the bombing. The new online experience, complete with multimedia components, is available from August 6, which marks the anniversary of the bombing. The virtual tour, titled Future Memory, is available for free.
In addition, there's a video tour of the Peace Park on YouTube, where the volunteer group Hiroshima Interpreters for Peace have uploaded a live-stream of the Hiroshima 75th anniversary event.
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