The 75-year-old was recovered from the water on Tuesday (December 13) at Moore Reef, around 30 miles from Cairns.

The woman, who had been snorkelling as part of a tour group, was given CPR by medical teams but was not able to be revived.

Last month saw the deaths of two French visitors who were both in their 70s and a 60-year-old British scuba diver.

According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation there have been 10 deaths at the popular tourist area this year – double the country’s marine tourism industry average.

The media outlet quoted the Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators as saying that most of the victims were elderly and had pre-existing medical conditions.

A spokesperson for the association said that it was considering altering regulation following the latest incident involving the Japanese tourist.

This would include making visitors over a certain age acknowledge the risks associated with water-based activities such as snorkelling and diving.

Col McKenzie, executive director, said: "While we are very proud of the fact we have the safest snorkelling in the world, we’ve got to sit down and have a really close look at all these events and see if there’s anything we can do.”

More than two million people visit the Great Barrier Reef each year and the area along the Queensland coast generates more than £1 billion in tourism revenue.