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2023 Saw Record-Breaking Temperatures across Japan

People walking in Harajuku, Tokyo, on the afternoon of July 10, 2023 during a heat wave. (©Sankei by Yukuto Hagihara)

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The average temperature in 2023 surpassed normal levels by 1.29 degrees according to an announcement by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) on January 4. Normal levels are calculated as the 30-year average up to 2020. This figure marks the highest increase ever recorded since statistical records started in 1898. The previous record was 0.65 degrees above the normal level in 2020. The increase in 2023 represents a significant and unprecedented record. Notably, higher temperatures have persisted in recent years, with the years 2019 to 2023 ranking as the top five in recorded history.

Record-Breaking Heat

According to JMA, the year 2023 set new records for high temperatures in three consecutive seasons – spring (March to May), summer (June to August), and autumn (September to November). Monthly, March, July, August, and September marked the highest temperatures ever recorded in statistical history.

People walking through the city with intense sunlight on the afternoon of July 23, 2023 in Kita Ward, Osaka City. (©Sankei by Shigeru Amari)

The highest temperature recorded nationwide in 2023 was 40.0 degrees Celsius, observed in Date City, Fukushima Prefecture on August 5 and in Komatsu City, Ishikawa Prefecture on August 10. Heat waves were also an issue. Temperatures exceeding 35 degrees Celsius persisted for 46 days in Kiryu City of Gunma Prefecture, also setting a new record for the highest number of scorching hot days in a year. 

The heat in Japan persisted into autumn. Central Tokyo recorded a temperature of 27.5 degrees Celsius on November 7, marking the highest temperature recorded in Tokyo for the month of November in a century.

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