A powerful 6.2-magnitude earthquake rattled southern Japan on Friday morning, with the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) recording the tremor at 8:04 am UAE time. This seismic event follows a significant 7.2-magnitude quake that occurred just last week off the coast of the Iwate prefecture. Fortunately, no tsunami warnings were triggered by these recent disturbances, though they serve as a stark reminder of the country’s high seismic activity, as Japan sits in a region that experiences roughly 18 percent of the world’s earthquakes each year.

Given that Japan is home to over 125 million people, the frequency of these tremors—which number in the hundreds annually—remains a constant concern for authorities. While many of these jolts are mild, the country remains deeply affected by the memories of the catastrophic 2011 undersea earthquake and the subsequent tsunami that led to the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Following a 7.7-magnitude tremor in April that caused injuries and structural shaking in Tokyo, officials have remained on high alert, even issuing advisory warnings regarding the potential for even stronger seismic events in the future.