JIM MCMAHON/MAPMAN®

Japan plans to roll out a new kind of train in 2018—but if people don’t look closely, they might miss it. That’s because the train cars will sport a mirrored exterior. Light will reflect, or bounce, off the surface, making the train nearly invisible.

The train will operate on an express commuter line around the city of Tokyo and its suburbs. Kazuyo Sejima, one of Japan’s top architects, created the design so the train would blend into its surroundings by reflecting the landscape around it—from urban skyscrapers to the mountainous countryside. “I thought it would be good if the train could gently coexist with this variety of scenery,” says Sejima.