By SHOKO RIKIMARU/ Staff Writer
September 2, 2024 at 18:05 JST
Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward remains bustling despite the high heat and humidity on Sept. 2. (Wataru Sekita)
This long and blistering summer averaged 1.76 degrees hotter than normal, the Japan Meteorological Agency announced on Sept. 2.
The June through August heat ties with 2023's average for the hottest summer since 1898 when statistics became available.
Of the nationwide observation sites, the highest individual temperature ever recorded was 41.1 degrees. It was logged for the first time in 2018 in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, and in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, in 2020.
This summer, the JMA says two locations nearly matched it: Sano, Tochigi Prefecture, hit 41 degrees on July 29 and Kuwana, Mie Prefecture, reached 40.4 degrees on Aug. 9.
Average summer temperatures have fluctuated over the past 100 years, but have been increasing at a long-term rate of 1.31 degrees, according to the JMA.
The national average temperatures are calculated from data collected at 15 stations across Japan that are less affected by urbanization, such as Choshi in Chiba Prefecture.
The average calculated using data from 1991-2020 serves as the benchmark.
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