Japanese astronaut Noguchi Soichi says he will do his best to ensure the success of his next mission on a new spacecraft developed by a private US company, SpaceX.

Noguchi spoke to NHK in an online interview from the United States.

Officials in the western Japanese city of Osaka say a hospital there instructed a nurse to continue to work despite testing positive for the coronavirus.

The officials learned of this after someone tweeted the allegation against Osaka's Namihaya Rehabilitation Hospital.

Health officials in Japan say more than 430 new cases and 29 deaths were reported on Thursday. The total number of confirmed cases is now over 12,000.

This does not include 712 cases linked to the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which was quarantined near Tokyo in February.

The Tokyo governor has urged residents to go shopping less frequently to reduce the chances of coronavirus infections at supermarkets and shopping arcades.

Governor Koike Yuriko made the appeal at an emergency news conference on Thursday.

Another Japanese celebrity fell victim to the coronavirus on Thursday. Actress Okae Kumiko died of pneumonia caused by COVID-19 at a hospital in Tokyo. She was 63.

Okae was born in Tokyo and made her debut in a TV drama in 1975. She appeared in many dramas and variety shows, gaining popularity from a wide range of age groups.

Japan has stepped up efforts to reduce person-to-person contact by 80 percent in a bid to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

Economic Revitalization Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi on Thursday issued guidelines on what kind of steps governors can take to get business owners that continue to ignore government requests to suspend their operations.

A survey by a child-advocacy group in Japan shows that social distancing for the country's fight against the coronavirus is forcing the temporary closures of nearly 40 percent of cafeterias for children in need.

The survey conducted by a non-profit organization had responses from 231 groups from across the country which organize cafeterias where children can receive free or low-priced meals served by volunteers.

Officials in southwestern Japan are dealing with a coronavirus outbreak on a cruise ship that was undergoing repairs in Nagasaki.

So far 127 of the 623 crew members on the Costa Atlantica have been tested. Of those, 48 have tested positive...including a man in his 40s who is being treated with a ventilator.

A survey says about 40 percent of freelance performers cannot expect any income this month, as they are hit by cancellations of cultural events due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The survey was jointly conducted online last week by 10 organizations involved in theater, dance and music. More than 2,900 people responded to the survey.

A man has died in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, while waiting to be hospitalized for the coronavirus.

Prefectural officials say the company employee in his 50s had been recuperating at home because he had mild symptoms. He lived alone.

Officials in Nagasaki, western Japan, have confirmed 14 more coronavirus infections on a cruise ship docked at a port in the prefecture. Forty-eight people on the ship have now tested positive for the virus.

Officials reported the new cases on Thursday, as work continued to test all 623 crew members aboard the Italian-registered Costa Atlantica.

Tokyo's Keio University Hospital says roughly six percent of its non-coronavirus patients have tested positive for the virus.

Hospital officials say 67 patients underwent pre-surgery or pre-hospitalization screening last week. None of them had coronavirus symptoms, but four of them tested positive.

A Japanese surfers' association is asking its members to stay at home because a state of emergency is in place for the coronavirus pandemic.

The Nippon Surfing Association posted a message on its website on Wednesday, ahead of the spring holidays that begin next week.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Japan stood at 12,023 on Thursday.

The tally includes people tested at airport quarantine stations, health ministry officials, quarantine officers and individuals who returned to Japan from China on government-chartered planes.