The heat continues in Japan and South Korea, after both countries experienced their warmest Junes on record and hit the same benchmark for July.
In Japan, the national temperature record fell on Wednesday, as the city of Tamba in western Honshu reached 41.2C, breaking the previous record from 2020 by 0.1C. On the same day, local temperature records were broken in 39 locations – including in Kyoto, which reached 40C for the first time – with almost a third of the Japan Meteorological Agency’s weather stations reporting highs above 35C. This is the third year in a row that the July average temperature record has been broken, with July 2025 closing out at 2.89C above the 1991-2020 average.
In a similarly sweltering South Korea, Seoul had a record-breaking 22 consecutive “tropical nights”, a term used by the Korea Meteorological Administration when overnight temperatures fail to fall below 25C. On Thursday, the minimum overnight temperature in the capital was 29.3C.
With August typically the hottest month of the year for both countries, fears are now growing for what may lie ahead. There is some respite on the horizon. Temperatures are expected to fall back to climate average by the weekend. However, long-term forecast models suggest that temperatures will trend above average throughout the latter part of August and into September. The summers of 2023 and 2024 were jointly the warmest recorded in Japan, while 2024 was one of South Korea’s warmest years overall – records that could fall by the end of 2025.
Meanwhile, the start of August was unusually wet and chilly for parts of eastern Australia. Complex low pressure systems to the east of the continent brought frequent rain to New South Wales, with large swathes of the eastern coast recording 100-200mm since the start of the month – around double the August average. This moist air flowing in from the Tasman Sea collided with colder air already sitting over eastern Australia. The fallout was a rare significant snowfall event over higher ground in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, where as much as 40cm fell in places – the heaviest for at least 20 years.
While there was significant disruption, with more than 27,000 homes losing power and about 200 vehicles becoming stranded, the snowfall was a positive experience for many. “Snow tourists” flocked to affected areas from further afield to enjoy the rare winter wonderland, some of whom came to see snow for the first time in their lives.
