Google opened its first flagship store in Japan in Tokyo's Omotesando district at 2 p.m. on August 13, marking the company's first flagship retail location outside the United States.

Fifteen days after the Kumamoto earthquake, restoration of electricity and transport infrastructure is progressing, but thousands of people are believed to remain outside official shelters, while rising construction costs and interest rates are creating new challenges for rebuilding homes and restoring livelihoods.

A mysterious red light stretching vertically across the night sky over Kanagawa Prefecture has been identified as a rare "sprite," a brief luminous phenomenon that occurs high above thunderclouds at roughly the same time as powerful lightning strikes.

Street performances began across Tokushima on August 12 as the city's Awa Odori festival entered its second day, with leading dance groups showcasing graceful routines after months of practice.

A large new typhoon formed near the Ogasawara Islands on August 12 and could approach Honshu around the end of the Obon holiday period, while the remnants of Typhoon No. 15 continue to bring unstable weather and a risk of heavy rain across a wide area of Japan.