No Freezing of Han River in Winter 2021... 9th Time Since Observations Began

Only Some Observation Points Frozen, No Overall Ice Formation
Minimum Temperature Must Stay Below -10°C for 4-5 Days to Cause Ice Formation
Temperatures Lower Than Average but Did Not Persist for More Than 4 Days

Han River Freezing Observation Point (Data provided by Korea Meteorological Administration)

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] In the winter of 2021, there was not a single day when the Han River observation point was frozen. This is the ninth time since freezing observations began in 1906.

On the 15th, the Korea Meteorological Administration announced that from December 2021 to February this year, no freezing was observed near the Noryangjin Hangang Bridge, the Han River freezing observation point. Although some parts of the observation site showed freezing, the entire area was not frozen.

The criterion for determining Han River freezing is that the belt-shaped area about 100 meters upstream from the second and fourth piers of the Hangang Bridge is completely covered with ice, making the river water invisible. Han River freezing observations began in 1906 and this location was designated as the observation standard point because it is easily accessible and important for crossing the river.

Analyzing Seoul temperatures from 5 days before to the day of Han River freezing over the past 7 years (2015-2021), the Korea Meteorological Administration found that Han River freezing occurred when the daily minimum temperature stayed below minus 10 degrees Celsius for about 4 to 5 days.

Last winter, Seoul's temperatures were similar to or lower than the average. The average temperature in winter 2021 was -0.9 degrees Celsius. The average temperatures were 0.6 degrees in December, -2.2 degrees in January, and -1.1 degrees in February. Compared to the average temperature (-0.3 degrees), except for December (0.2 degrees), January (-1.9 degrees) and February (0.7 degrees) were both higher than this year.

The Korea Meteorological Administration explained, "Because days with temperatures lower or higher than the average repeated periodically and there were no days when temperatures below minus 10 degrees lasted for more than 4 days, it was difficult for the river to freeze completely."

January 20, 2022, a part of the Han River frozen (Photo by Korea Meteorological Administration)

The absence of Han River freezing is also related to climate change. As the average daily minimum temperature in Seoul during winter steadily rises, the number of days with a daily minimum temperature below minus 10 degrees decreases, and the freezing days of the Han River are getting later.

The recent 30-year (1991-2020) average first freezing day of the Han River is January 10. This is 22 days later than the average from 1906 to 1930, 16 days later than the average from 1931 to 1960, and 1 day later than the average from 1961 to 1990.

The earliest freezing day of the Han River was December 4, 1934, and the latest was February 13, 1964, during the winter of 1953. The years when Han River freezing was not observed are the winters of 1960, 1971, 1972, 1978, 1988, 1991, 2006, 2019, and 2021.

In the winter of 2019, Seoul's average maximum temperature was 6.1 degrees Celsius, ranking first historically, the average temperature was 1.8 degrees, and the average minimum temperature was -1.9 degrees, ranking second historically. There were only 4 days in the winter of 2019 when the temperature dropped below minus 10 degrees.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.