Today, the first snowfall occurred at the summit of Mount Fuji in Japan, one month later than usual. Typically, the first snow falls at the 3,776-meter-high mountain around October 2, about a month after the end of the summer hiking season. Last year, snow fell on the mountain on October 5.
This marks the latest first snowfall in 130 years, surpassing the previous record of October 26 set in 2016. Users on social media shared photos of the snowless peak and linked the lack of snow to climate change, according to the Associated Press.
The office officially announced that the first snowfall had not occurred since 1984, as the summit is not visible from there due to cloudy conditions.
The local meteorological service reports that ‘it needs data over a longer period to draw any conclusions’ about whether the situation is related to climate change, pointing to the high temperatures in October. The average temperature in October at the summit is -2 °C, but this year, the highest recorded temperature was 1.6 °C, the highest since 1932. This year’s temperatures have been higher across Japan, including at Mount Fuji.
