A typhoon making its way up Japan's Pacific coast has been downgraded to a severe tropical storm but officials say conditions could still be dangerous. (NHK)

A strong typhoon is heading up the coast of eastern Japan away from the heavily populated Kanto region. There are no reports of major damage but alerts remain in place. Please click on the image for a further explanation from our meteorologist. (NHK)

Facial recognition software is to be introduced at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games for the first time in the history of the event. (NHK)

Tokyo Medical University has admitted to tampering with entrance exam scores to raise the bar for women and for men who failed such exams several times. (NHK)

Enduring a deadly heat wave this summer, Japan is considering adopting daylight saving time from next year, so that the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games can stage events during cooler hours, the Sankei Shimbun newspaper reported Monday. (Japan Times)

A Japanese court has begun a trial filed by a man who is seeking compensation from the government after being forced to undergo sterilization under the now-defunct Eugenic Protection Law. (NHK)

A 10-meter-long whale washed ashore at a beach in Kamakura City on Sunday, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

A French woman has been missing in eastern Japan since late last month, police announced Sunday. (Japan Today)

Holidaymakers have flocked to a maze created with sunflowers in Yamagata Prefecture, northern Japan. (NHK)

One of the largest summer festivals in northeastern Japan has started in Akita City, featuring bamboo poles decorated with dozens of lanterns. (NHK)

Hotel Okura Tokyo, the flagship hotel of one of Japan's top hotel chain operators, has been fully booked during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics thanks to stays by officials connected with the International Olympic Committee. (Kyodo)

Strong sunshine pushed up temperatures across most of Japan on Friday. (NHK)

Triathlon events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be staged on the large man-made island of Odaiba in Tokyo Bay and will start early in the morning to counter the heat that is expected in the Japanese capital. (Japan Today)

Sharp will stop making household appliances in Japan, relocating production abroad as it turns toward markets such as China and Southeast Asia. (Nikkei)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Tuesday arrested a female Canadian cosplay (costume play) enthusiast for allegedly engaging in a fake marriage with a Japanese national two years ago in order to obtain residency, reports Jiji Press. (tokyoreporter.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a male Chinese national employed at a reflexology massage parlor in Ota Ward over the alleged molestation of a female customer last month, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

Many parts of Japan saw record high temperatures and heavy rains in July. The Meteorological Agency called last month's weather conditions abnormal. (NHK)

Tochigi Prefectural Police have arrested two persons, a man and a boy, over the killing of an 82-year-old man at his residence in Tochigi City last week, reports the Asahi Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

Atsuko Maeda, 27, a pop cultural icon and original member of the all-girl group AKB48, has married actor Ryo Katsuji, 31, an official of his management company said on Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Japan will support Britain in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership accord as both countries seek to promote free and rules-based trade, economy revitalization minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Japan has decided to reduce its plutonium stockpile, in line with its principle of possessing only the amount necessary for peaceful use, the country’s nuclear panel said Tuesday, while failing to give a numerical target. (Japan Times)

The governor of Tokyo has declared that the new site for the city's main food market is safe. The declaration by Yuriko Koike paves the way for the planned opening of the Toyosu market in October. (NHK)

A runway at Narita Airport near Tokyo has reopened after being closed for several hours due to a passenger plane that mistakenly entered a taxiway under construction. (NHK)

A university in Tokyo decided Monday it will dismiss two former coaches of its American football team over a dangerous late tackle by one of its players during an intercollegiate game in May that injured an opposing player. (Japan Today)

A major fireworks festival was held on Sunday evening along one of Tokyo's rivers after being postponed on Saturday due to an approaching typhoon. (NHK)