Photo/Illutration Tokyoites bundle up against the cold in the Shibuya district on Oct. 7. (Hiroyuki Yamamoto)

Tokyo on Oct. 7 experienced frigid conditions not experienced around this time of year in nearly nine decades.

The capital was not alone in the shiver stakes.

A cold front sent temperatures plummeting around the nation and rain kept the mercury unseasonably low throughout the day.

Weather observation points in at least 44 prefectures recorded the lowest temperatures so far this autumn.

In the capital’s Chiyoda Ward, the day’s high--13 degrees--was reached between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. That was 10.5 degrees lower than the average and a reading normally observed in early December.

The last time the daytime high in central Tokyo in early October fell to under 14 degrees was 1934, 88 years ago.

Rain throughout the day caused temperatures to continue falling, sinking to 11.3 degrees, the lowest so far this autumn, between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.

Fuchu in western Tokyo recorded a high of 12.5 degrees, 11.1 degrees lower than the average.

The temperature in Osaka’s Chuo Ward was 15 degrees, the lowest this autumn. Rain kept the temperature down and the high of 18.1 degrees was reached between noon and 1 p.m.

The lowest high for the day by 5 p.m. was recorded in Fukushima where the mercury hit 6 degrees. Other municipalities with low temperatures were Aomori at 6.5 degrees and Tsumagoi village in Gunma Prefecture at 7.1 degrees.

The Japan Meteorological Agency is forecasting temperatures below normal years for Oct. 8, mainly in Hokkaido and northern Japan.

A low-pressure front is expected to destabilize the weather in large parts of the nation over the latter half of the three-day weekend that kicked off Oct. 8.

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