The , abbreviated to DMO, is a type of Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) and a part of a . There are five District Meteorological Observatories in Japan. They are responsible for regional observation of the atmosphere, earthquakes, volcanos, and gathering data to make public service announcements and provide warnings in the event of a natural disaster. They also supervise and other weather stations within each district area.
In addition to the above weather observatories, is considered to be equivalent to them in a status owing to the wideness of its district area, which is covering largely in the ocean. This particular position is provided by Article XLVIII, Section 2 of the .