Throughout 2018, Japan endured a steady series of hammer blows, including: A massive snowfall that all but shut down towns along the Japan Sea coast for nearly a week An earthquake in June that seriously damaged some parts of Osaka and neighboring cities Widespread deadly flooding in July after much of western Japan received incredible amounts of torrential rain that broke all historical records Record-breaking heat for much of the summer that resulted in thousands of deaths Another earthquake in September, this time in southern Hokkaido, that left millions without power for up to three days and disrupted the economy of the island The strongest typhoon in 25 years, which shut down Osaka's main international airport for nearly a week