"Already 30 Degrees in May" Early Heatwave Sparks Summer Fear

Daytime Temperature 30°C... Seoul One Week Earlier Than Last Year
"Super El Ni?o Could Recreate 2016 Heatwave"

As daytime high temperatures rise above 30 degrees Celsius in most parts of the country, an early midsummer heatwave has arrived, raising concerns about this summer's heatwave. There are worries that an unprecedented heatwave could occur due to the influence of a super El Ni?o returning after 8 years.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), warm southwesterly winds flowed in on this day, causing daytime high temperatures to rise above 30℃ mainly in inland and East Coast areas.

The KMA sets the heatwave advisory issuance criteria as "when the daily maximum apparent temperature remains at 33 degrees or higher for two or more consecutive days." The apparent temperature is calculated by reflecting humidity and wind on the air temperature. Even at the same temperature, higher humidity results in a proportionally higher apparent temperature.

The KMA attributes the cause of this early heatwave to the inflow of warm southwesterly winds due to high pressure located over the southern seas of Japan. Although temperatures are forecasted to drop to average levels starting from the 18th, many citizens are already worried about this summer's heatwave due to the early heatwave arriving in mid-May. Last year, the first time Seoul's daytime temperature exceeded 30 degrees was on May 23 (30.7 degrees). This means summer heat arrived about a week earlier than usual.

On July 4th last year, a citizen is seen carrying a handheld fan while walking on Sinbanpo-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Professor Ham Yu-geun of the Department of Earth Environmental Sciences at Chonnam National University predicted, "A heatwave similar to that of 7 or 8 years ago could occur." The 7 to 8 years ago he refers to is 2016, which was recorded as the "hottest year on record" due to abnormal high temperatures.

Due to the super El Ni?o that occurred at the end of 2015, South Korea's annual average temperature in 2016 was 13.6 degrees Celsius, 1.1 degrees higher than the normal average (12.5 degrees), marking the hottest year on record.

This is the highest since nationwide meteorological observations began in 1973. The earliest May heatwave advisory since the heatwave advisory system was implemented in 2008 was also issued on May 20, 2016. Although an early start to heatwaves does not necessarily mean a hotter summer, it is a sign to watch closely amid the current acceleration of global warming.

El Ni?o is a phenomenon where sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific rise above normal, occurring every 3 to 7 years. A super El Ni?o refers to a much stronger event than a typical El Ni?o (which involves a 0.5-degree rise).

Professor Ham explained that this year's heatwave is occurring due to the overlapping effects of the super El Ni?o and climate change. He said, "There have been 3 to 4 super El Ni?os in the past, but the high-temperature phenomena are much more pronounced now. It seems that the temperature rose rapidly not just because of the super El Ni?o alone, but because climate change overlapped with it."

He also urged attention to abnormal high-temperature phenomena and climate change.

He stated, "We can go indoors and use air conditioning when it rains or when temperatures are high. But if we think about whether natural ecosystems can adapt, the answer is no. It is known that if the Earth's temperature rises by 2 degrees, 15 to 40% of species will become extinct. Please keep thinking about why these things happen and what efforts are needed to mitigate them."

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