Japan Sees Hottest-Ever Temperature, Breaking a Record That Couldn’t Last a Week

The latest is Japan: the country saw its highest ever temperature last week, in the western Hyogo region, at 41.2 degrees Celsius (106.1 degrees Fahrenheit). Then on Tuesday, that record fell to an even hotter 41.8 C (107.2 F) in the city of Isesaki, to the north of Tokyo. Japan, of course, has one of the oldest populations of any country, with 28 percent aged 65 and above; the heat is not kind to the elderly.

The whole region is sweating through it these days, with authorities in Japan as well as South Korea issuing health warnings and urging precautions against heat stroke. In Seoul, overnight temperatures stayed above 77 degrees for a record 22 consecutive days, exacerbating the dangers of hot daylight hours. On Tuesday, the Korea Meteorological Agency confirmed that last month was the country’s second-hottest July on record.

Japan’s was the hottest ever, since record-keeping began in 1898. Other records there, of course, are much older — the cherry blossoms in Kyoto, whose blooms have been recorded since 812, now arrive substantially earlier in the year than ever before. Last year, Mt. Fuji set its own record, achieving the longest stretch without its signature snowcap than ever in 130 years of records.

Throw a dart at a map at this point and you’ll likely find records falling somewhere nearby — like last week, when Tampa, Florida, broke 100 degrees for the first time ever. In Tokyo, the heat is forecast to remain for at least the next few days; the new record may be safe for the moment, but it’s just holding a spot for the next one.