Two men were rescued from waters off Miyagi Prefecture early Wednesday after their unsuccessful attempt to become the first Japanese to cross the Pacific in a hot-air balloon.

Michio Kanda, 54, an official of the municipal government of Kawajima, Saitama Prefecture, and graduate student Naoki Ishikawa, 26, landed in the ocean some 1,500 km off the Miyagi coast around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, about 12 hours after setting off from Tochigi Prefecture, Japan Coast Guard officials said.

The officials said the NYK Starlight containership of Nippon Yusen K.K. rescued the men after finding them floating in their gondola around 3:30 a.m.