A powerful earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale has struck northern Japan, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.
The epicenter of the earthquake was near the city of Kushiro on the island of Hokkaido, and the tremor was recorded at around 17:37 local time (08:37 GMT), at a depth of about 20 kilometers.
Japanese authorities have not yet released official information about possible casualties or material damage, and no tsunami warning has been issued.
