NEWSWORTHY
As spring approaches, the country's weather forecasters face one of their biggest missions of the year: predicting exactly when the famed cherry blossoms will bloom. The nation's sakura (cherry blossom) season is feverishly anticipated by locals and visitors alike. Many tourists plan their entire trips ...
Japanese weather observatories shift to forecasting snow over shorter spans
Weather observatories are shifting toward providing snow forecasts for shorter time frames, hoping to better accommodate sudden weather changes and prevent disasters and traffic disruptions. The observatories have traditionally forecasted snow for the next 24 hours, but many have shifted to 12 hours and some ...
False quake alarm gives Tokyoites a midnight scare
Brace yourself, a strong quake is coming. This dramatic emergency message sent to smartphones and loudspeakers caused a brief panic after midnight Wednesday in Tokyo and neighboring prefectures, with many taking to social media to express their confusion over whether or not to get ready ...
After deadly heat wave, typhoon could hit Honshu over the weekend
The season’s 12th typhoon, which was upgraded from a tropical cyclone early Wednesday, is expected to intensify in force and reach waters near the Ogasawara Islands on Friday.
12 dead, nearly 10,000 taken to hospitals last week as ongoing heat wave engulfs Japan
Temperatures soared to more than 35 C, with cities in central Japan seeing the highest levels this year at about 40 C, the weather agency said.
Death toll from west Japan downpours and flooding reaches 126
The death toll from torrential rains in western Japan passes the 100 mark and many people are still missing.
At least four killed, more than 300 injured after strong earthquake rattles Osaka
One of the most powerful earthquakes to rock the Kansai region in decades struck Osaka and neighboring prefectures Monday morning, leaving at least four people dead and more than 300 injured. The earthquake, which had a magnitude of 6.1 and registered lower 6 on the ...
Here is a collection of links in English and Japanese that might prove useful in dealing with the earthquake that struck the Osaka region Monday morning: Government agencies Japan Meteorological Agency Disaster preparedness Railways and subways JR West Osaka Metro Power and gas companies Kansai Electric Tourist emergencies ...
Japan declares early start of rainy season in northern Kyushu and Shikoku
The rainy season appears to have begun in northern Kyushu and Shikoku, the Meteorological Agency announced Monday. The start of the rainy season in these regions came eight days earlier than the average and 23 days earlier than last year, the agency said. The areas covered ...
The Meteorological Agency needs to beef up its volcano monitoring and alert system.
When Mount Moto-Shirane in Gunma Prefecture erupted without warning Jan. 23, killing one person and injuring 11 others, the Meteorological Agency was unable to issue an alert immediately after the eruption — the first one was issued only about an hour later. The town ...
Across the Kanto region and in parts of Fukushima Prefecture on Jan. 5, alarms suddenly rang out at 11:02 a.m. from cellphones and public speakers.
Earthquake warnings leave Kanto jolted, but the big shake never came
An erroneous earthquake warning in the Kanto region and Fukushima Prefecture came as a result of two temblors being processed by the prediction system as one event.
