Magnitude 6 earthquake hits northern Japan

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.0 jolted northern Japan today, a government agency said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage and no tsunami warning was issued.

The focus of the tremor was 40 km below the surface of the earth, in Iwate prefecture, about 450 km north of Tokyo, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The earthquake measured a 4 on the Japanese intensity scale, which measures ground motion. A quake of that reading can cause ornaments or furniture to fall over.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas.

The country accounts for about 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.

Reuters