Japan tells residents to immediately take shelter after North Korea fired a missile

People in Japan have been told to take shelter after North Korea fired what's believed to be a ballistic missile over the country.

The Japan Times reports Japanese officials triggered their J-Alert warning system over fears the weapon was headed for them.

Residents were urged to immediately 'evacuate inside a building or underground'.

It's the first time since 2017 that the system has had to be activated after North Korea made a similar missile test.

But local media reports the missile landed in the Pacific Ocean hundreds of miles from the Japanese coast.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the missile flew over the Tohoku region.

This is the fifth missile test from North Korea in 10 days.

Professor Leif-Eric Easley from Ewha University in Seoul, told The Guardian these recent weapons tests could be a sign of things to come or it could just be muscle flexing from North Korea.

“By now, North Korea’s short-range missile tests suffer diminishing returns in terms of technical advancement, domestic political value, and international signaling," he said.

"Diplomacy isn’t dead, but talks aren’t about to resume either.

“Pyongyang is still in the middle of a provocation and testing cycle and is likely waiting until after China’s mid-October Communist party congress to conduct a more militarily significant test.”