On August 1, at 2:08 PM, the temperature in Yangsan, South Korea, soared to 41.6 degrees Celsius, breaking the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in the country in 122 years of weather observation.
According to Yonhap News, the temperature in Yangsan first reached 40 degrees at 12:14 PM and continued to rise, peaking at 41.6 degrees.
Based on data from 97 climate observation points managed by the Korea Meteorological Administration, such high temperatures have not been recorded since modern weather observations began in 1904.
The previous record was set just a day earlier in Yangsan at 41.4 degrees. Before this year, the highest temperature recorded was 41.0 degrees in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province, on August 1, 2018.
There is potential for the temperature in Yangsan to rise even further, as the sun has not yet set and temperatures typically peak between 2 PM and 3 PM.
If the temperature reaches 42.0 degrees, it would mark an unprecedented record. Even including automatic weather observation stations, there have been no recorded instances of temperatures reaching 42 degrees in South Korea.
Since the expansion of the weather observation network in 1973, only three instances of higher temperatures than the previous day’s record in Yangsan have been documented: 41.9 degrees in Jiwol-ri, Gwangju, on August 1, 2018; 41.8 degrees in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul, on the same day; and 41.6 degrees in Geumsam-myeon, Yeoju, on August 4, 2024.
On the same day, temperatures in various locations across Gyeongnam Province also reached the 40-degree mark. As of 2 PM, the highest recorded temperatures included 40.5 degrees in Geumjeong-gu, Busan; 40.4 degrees in Changwon; and 40.2 degrees in Gimhae.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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