Scientists have completed the first stage of an ambitious plan to drill down into an earthquake-generating region near Japan.

The project saw holes bored 1.4km into the sea floor, producing 3D images of stresses inside the quake zone.

The Nankai Trough produced major lethal earthquakes and tsunami during the last century.

The eventual aim is to place instruments 6km deep in the crust, possibly as an early warning system.

Findings from the initial phase of the Nankai Trough Seismogenic Zone Experiment (NanTroSEIZE) were presented here at the European Geosciences Union (EGU) annual meeting.