The Japan Meteorological Agency lifted a tsunami advisory two hours
after it was issued following the quake, which hit at 8am Japan time
(1200 NZT).
The quake's epicenter was at a depth of about 10 kilometers. It shook much of northeast Japan and could be felt in Tokyo, 690 kilometers away.
Small tsunamis of up to 20 centimeters were
recorded after the quake along the coast of Iwate prefecture, according
to the agency, much smaller than the possible 1-meter (3-foot) tsunami
mentioned in the advisory.
Several smaller aftershocks were also reported in the area.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or casualties following the quake, local media said.
Large areas of the coastline covered by the advisory were damaged by the 2011 quake and tsunami that killed more than 18,000 people and triggered a nuclear accident in Fukushima.
The city of Ofunato in Iwate issued an evacuation advisory to more than 1350 households.
Japan is hit by around a fifth of the world's powerful quakes every year and sits at the conjunction of several tectonic plates.
There was no damage to any of nuclear reactors in the region as they have been off-line since 2011, Japan's public broadcaster NHK said.
The quake's epicenter was at a depth of about 10 kilometers. It shook much of northeast Japan and could be felt in Tokyo, 690 kilometers away.
Several smaller aftershocks were also reported in the area.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or casualties following the quake, local media said.
Large areas of the coastline covered by the advisory were damaged by the 2011 quake and tsunami that killed more than 18,000 people and triggered a nuclear accident in Fukushima.
The city of Ofunato in Iwate issued an evacuation advisory to more than 1350 households.
There was no damage to any of nuclear reactors in the region as they have been off-line since 2011, Japan's public broadcaster NHK said.
