Some 20,000 troops are being deployed in the operation in Kyushu region after the magnitude-7.3 quake at 01:25 on Saturday (15:25 GMT Friday).
At least 18 people have been killed and hundreds injured, media reports say.
Dozens of people are feared trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings. The quake on Thursday killed nine people.
Roads have been damaged and big landslides have been reported over a wide area. Some 200,000 households are now without power.
There are fears that forecast rain could set off more mudslides.
Collapsed dam
The extra troops are being sent to Kyushu to help police and firefighters. "We are making every effort to respond," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.
The second quake - which was at a depth of 10km (six miles) near Kumamoto - was much bigger and hit a wider area than the one that struck the city of Kumamoto on Thursday night.
Kumamoto prefectural official TomTom
oyuki Tanaka told AP that the death toll was climbing by the hour.
Thousands of people spent the night on the streets and in parks - where they were huddled under blankets looking dazed and afraid.
There are many reports of people trapped inside buildings, including at least 60 inside an old people's home.
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