Temperatures to Climb Even Higher... 'Suffocating Heatwave' Has Yet to Peak

Suffocating Heat Continues
Evenly Hot Weather Both Day and Night

The suffocating heatwave continues, but it appears that the peak of the heat has not yet arrived.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration on July 28, the national daily average temperature from June 1 to July 27 was 24.2 degrees Celsius. This is the second highest for the same period since 1973, when the national meteorological observation network was expanded and began serving as the reference point for various weather records.

Yonhap News Agency

7.8 Days of Tropical Nights on Average... The Highest Since 1973

The highest recorded was last year at 24.8 degrees Celsius, while third place was two years ago at 24.2 degrees Celsius. As weather records prioritize the most recent instance, this year has ranked second ahead of two years ago.

A high daily average temperature indicates that both daytime and nighttime temperatures were uniformly elevated. The national daily average highest and lowest temperatures during this period were 29.1 degrees Celsius and 20.1 degrees Celsius, respectively, both ranking fourth in recorded history.

For the same period, the top three daily average highest temperatures were 2025 (29.8 degrees), 1994 (29.8 degrees), and 2018 (29.3 degrees). The top three daily average lowest temperatures were 2013 (20.5 degrees), 2025 (20.4 degrees), and 2022 (20.2 degrees).

The suffocating heatwave continues, but it appears that the peak of the heat has not yet arrived. Photo to aid understanding of the article. The Asia Business Daily DB.

The reason for this relentless heat both day and night is hot and humid air. As hot and humid air flows in along the periphery of the North Pacific High, radiative cooling at night is blocked, preventing temperatures from dropping significantly.

In fact, from June 1 to July 27, the national average number of tropical nights (when the lowest nighttime temperature is above 25 degrees Celsius) was 7.8 days. This is the highest for this period since 1973.

High Likelihood of Breaking Records After the Weekend

The stifling heat continues, but the peak of the heatwave has yet to arrive. Photo to help understand the article. Photo by The Asia Business Daily Database.

If temperatures do not fall at night, daytime temperatures inevitably rise further, prolonging the heat. Moreover, it appears that the peak of the heatwave has not yet arrived. For the time being, hot and humid air will continue to flow in, the heat that enters will not dissipate, and strong sunlight is also expected to persist for a while.

The Korea Meteorological Administration predicts that from August 1 to 7, morning temperatures will range from 23 to 27 degrees Celsius and daytime temperatures from 33 to 39 degrees Celsius, with morning lows similar to the average (22 to 25 degrees Celsius) but daytime highs significantly exceeding the average (30 to 33 degrees Celsius).

In particular, it forecasts that daytime temperatures in Daegu from August 1 to 7 will reach 39 degrees Celsius every day. Considering historical records, this effectively signals "record-breaking heat." If the current forecast holds, records could be broken at any time after the weekend.

Since weather observations began in Daegu in January 1907, the highest temperature ever recorded in August was 40.0 degrees Celsius on August 1, 1942. Second place is 39.3 degrees Celsius on August 1, 1932. The third highest is 39.2 degrees Celsius on August 14, 1995; fourth is 39.0 degrees Celsius on August 5, 1915; and fifth is 38.8 degrees Celsius on August 2, 1977.

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