A recording of Emperor Hirohito's voice declaring Japan's surrender in World War II has been brought back to life after 70 years, in a previously unavailable, higher quality recording of the historic broadcast that was made available to the public Sunday.

The Imperial Household Agency had earlier posted on its website the audio recording of the Emperor, posthumously known as Emperor Showa.

The freely streamable audio, which was digitized from the master analog discs used in the Aug. 15, 1945, noon radio broadcast, provides the Emperor's voice in a clearer sound with a hint of ambience in the room, though static noise typical of old analog discs is prominent.