Photo/Illutration Visitors walk with parasols and portable fans under the scorching sun at the Osaka Kansai Expo site in Osaka on June 27. (Hiyori Uchiumi)

The Japan Meteorological Agency announced on June 27 that the rainy season likely ended more than two weeks earlier than usual in southern and northern Kyushu in addition to the Shikoku, Chugoku and Kinki regions.

If confirmed, the end of rainy season in northern Kyushu, Shikoku, Chugoku and Kinki would mark the earliest since record-keeping began in 1951. For southern Kyushu, the end would be the second earliest on record.

Rainy season usually ends in mid-July in each of these regions, but this year, the  seasonal rain front was pushed northward much earlier due to a strong Pacific high-pressure system.

Compared to last year, rainy season ended 19 days earlier in southern Kyushu, 20 days earlier in northern Kyushu and Shikoku, 24 days earlier in Chugoku and 21 days earlier in Kinki.

Compared to the average year, rainy season ended 18 days earlier in southern Kyushu, 22 days earlier in northern Kyushu, 20 days earlier in Shikoku and 22 days earlier in Chugoku and Kinki.

The earliest end to rainy season ever recorded was July 1 in northern Kyushu and Shikoku, and July 3 in Chugoku and Kinki.

The records of the beginning and end of the rainy season announced by the JMA are preliminary, with official figures to be announced in September after a review of the summer meteorological records and other factors.

In the past, there have been revisions of about one month to the announcements of the preliminary end of the rainy season. 

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