Matsumi Park [ja] has a 45m-high observation deck and a Japanese style garden with flowers and a small pond.

In the extreme south is the Ushiku Lagoon; the Nishiyata, Higashiyata and Inari rivers discharge their waters into it.

Ibaraki Prefecture Tsukuba has a humid continental climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light snowfall.

With the creation of the modern municipalities system after the Meiji Restoration on April 1, 1889, the town Yatabe was established within Tsukuba District, Ibaraki.

Construction of the city centre, the University of Tsukuba and 46 public basic scientific research laboratories began in the 1970s.

The Expo '85 world's fair was held in the area of Tsukuba Science City, which at the time was still divided administratively between several small towns and villages.

Therefore, Yatabe, Ōho, Toyosato, Sakura, Tsukuba and Kukizaki, correspond to the ancient towns and villages.

The city has an international flair, with about 7,500 foreign students and researchers from as many as 133 countries living in Tsukuba at any one time.

Over the past several decades, nearly half of Japan's public research and development budget has been spent in Tsukuba.

Important scientific breakthroughs by its researchers include the identification and specification of the molecular structure of superconducting materials, the development of organic optical films that alter their electrical conductivity in response to changing light, and the creation of extreme low-pressure vacuum chambers[citation needed].

Earthquake safety, environmental degradation, studies of roadways, fermentation science, microbiology, and plant genetics are some of the broad research topics having close public-private partnerships.

[7] On May 6, 2012, Tsukuba was struck by a tornado that caused heavy damage to numerous structures and left approximately 20,000 residents without electricity.

[8] Tsukuba has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 28 members.

In terms of national politics, the city is part of Ibaraki 6th district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

The local economy was traditionally based on rice production, and Tsukuba still has the largest area under paddy fields in Ibaraki Prefecture.

After the establishment of Tsukuba Science City, the numerous government and private research institutes has drawn a large number of factories and supporting businesses.

[12] In September 1963, the national government of Japan, led by Ichiro Kono and Kniomi Umezawa, ordered the development of a science city in the area around the mountain Tsukuba.

[11] Reasons behind this decision included the overcrowding in Tokyo, the overflow of applicants to Japanese elite universities, a desire of conservative politicians to decrease the influence of liberal teachers and students, and a need to catch up with the West in terms of scientific knowledge.

[11] In 1966, after a few years of intensive study, the government started the project by buying land in the Tsukuba area.

This move was a culture shock for the families from Tokyo due to the dirt roads and open fields in Tsukuba.

Leo Esaki is a Nobel prize winner and worked at IBM prior to becoming president of the University of Tsukuba.

Due to his history in the corporate world, he was able to create a climate were companies and graduate students could work together closely.

In order to meet the demand, a pit was dug where the waste could be dumped until a garbage service would be developed in the city.