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Japan's iconic Mount Fuji, known for its snowcap forming around this time of the year, is still snowless in November for the first time in 130 years, presumably because of the unusually warm temperatures in the past few weeks.
The lack of snow on Mount Fuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site, as of Tuesday breaks the previous record set on Oct 26, 2016, meteorological officials said.
Usually, the 3,776-meter-high mountain has sprinkles of snow falling on its summit starting Oct 2, about a month after the summertime hiking season there ends. Last year, snow fell on the mountain on Oct 5, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, or JMA.
The snowless Mount Fuji has captured attention on social media. People posted photos showing the bare mountain, some expressing surprise and others concerned over climate change.
The JMA's Kofu Local Meteorological Office, which keeps weather data in central Japan and was the agency that announced the first snowfall on Mount Fuji in 1894, has cited October's surprisingly summery weather as the reason.
The average October temperature is minus 2 Celsius at the summit, but this year, it was 1.6 Celsius, a record high since 1932.
Japan this year also had an unusually hot summer and warm autumn.
A symbol of Japan, the mountain called “Fujisan” used to be a place of pilgrimage. The mountain with its snowy top and near symmetrical slopes have been the subject of numerous forms of art, including Japanese ukiyoe artist Katsushika Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.
Today, it attracts hikers who climb to the summit to see the sunrise. But tons of trash left behind and overcrowding have triggered concern and calls for environmental protection and measures to control overtourism.
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16 Comments
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falseflagsteve
Same headline a few days ago.
factchecker
Panic!
virusrex
No, not at all, the lack of snow was unprecedent even before, but to continue until now it a sign things are much worse still, there is meaning on reporting on a situation that shows absence of something that was expected to happen.
Fortunately rational people do not panic when information is provided, that is something that happens to those with antiscientific bias, that panic when science can prove something they are unable to accept.
KariHaruka
The below freezing temperatures are there. But there needs to be precipitation for any snowcap to begin forming.
If the forecasts are correct, that should be this weekend.
https://www.mountain-forecast.com/peaks/Fuji-san/forecasts/3776
falseflagsteve
Virus
Yeah, same headline, not a few months or weeks ago but days, I rest my case.
wallace
We have to visit our Fuji family grave to intern BIL and SIL on the 15th. I expect there will be snow by then.
falseflagsteve
Wallace
Sorry, what’s BIL and SIL mean mate.
mountainpear
I saw yukimushi a few days ago, so maybe snow will be here soon!
travelbangaijin
It's going to blow!
wallace
BIl, brother-in-law. SIL, sister-in-law.
falseflagsteve
Wallace
Thanks, never heard those terms before, hope it all goes ok.
Toshihiro
This is climate change in plain sight. It's not just Mt. Fuji that is making this apparent. I know this is big news because the more than a decade record has been broken, but many weather-related records around the world have been broken just this year alone.
We might see a year where there will be no snow on Mt. Fuji at all.
falseflagsteve
Toshiro
Well, last week in Sapporo where my partners mummy lives it was snowing much earlier than usual.
Tokyo Guy
I have no dog in this fight, but I've also been up to Hokkaido recently, near Asahikawa, and there was absolutely no sign of snow.
For it to snow in Sapporo before it does in the Asahikawa area would be incredibly unusual.
virusrex
And still completely incorrect, days are still a huge development taking into account the delay is considered an important sign of the changes, your completely arbitrary threshold is just your own personal opinion, if meteorologists give so much importance to the record late snow going on for even longer they are a much better source to judge if this is important or not, nameless people on the internet saying this is nothing are not exactly a source with comparable importance.
grc
Perhaps we can extend the hiking season, and get more money