JP-1121998 A 700 series train on Nozomi service

The 700 series (700系 Nanahyaku-kei) is a Japanese Shinkansen high-speed train type built between 1997 and 2006, and entering service in 1999.  This series formed the next generation of shinkansen vehicles jointly designed by JR Central and JR-West for use on both Tokaido and San'yō Shinkansen lines.

The 700 series is characterized by its flat 'duck-bill' nose designed to reduce the piston effect as the trains enter tunnels. 16-car units are painted white with blue stripes beneath the windows, and are used for Nozomi, Hikari, and Kodama services on the Tokaido and San'yō Shinkansen lines, while 8-car units used for the San'yō Shinkansen Hikari Rail Star services have a darker livery (grey with black window areas and a yellow stripe beneath the windows) which also acts to visually deemphasize the units' nose area, resulting in a more streamlined impression.

This postcard shows a N700 train on Nozomi service.  Nozomi (のぞみ, "Wish") is the fastest train service running on the Tokaido/San'yō Shinkansen lines in Japan. The service stops at only the largest stations, and along the stretch between Shin-Osaka and Hakata, Nozomi services using N700 series equipment reach speeds of 300 km/h (186 mph). 

The Nozomi trains stop at fewer stations than the Hikari and Kodama trains. On the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, Nozomi trains stop at Tokyo Station, Shinagawa Station, Shin-Yokohama Station, Nagoya Station, Kyoto Station, and Shin-Ōsaka Station. On the Sanyō Shinkansen, all Nozomi trains stop at Shin-Kobe Station, Okayama Station, Hiroshima Station, Kokura Station, and Hakata Station, but certain trains stop at additional stations as well. The Nozomi train service is not valid for foreign tourists travelling with a Japan Rail Pass.

Kanae of Chiba, Japan (Postcrossing, July 2018) sent me this great train postcard.