Mount Fuji remains snowless for longest time, breaking 130-year record

Japan’s majestic Mount Fuji remain snowless, making it the latest time in the year that its slopes have been bare since the record started 130 years ago.

The volcano’s peak typically receives snow by early October, but due to unusually warm weather, no snowfall has been reported so far this year, the country’s weather agency said. Last year, the snow was first detected on October 5, as per AFP news agency.

However, due to warm weather, no snowfall has been observed till Tuesday (Oct 29). This marked the latest date since comparative data became available in 1984, beating the previous record of October 26 recorded twice in 1955 and 2016.

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“Temperatures were high this summer, and these high temperatures continued into September, deterring cold air” which brings snow, Yutaka Katsuta, a forecaster at Kofu Local Meteorological Office told the AFP news agency.

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Katsuta said climate change might have impacted the delay in the snowcap’s formation. Japan experienced its joint hottest summer on record with temperatures between June and August being 1.76 Celsius higher than average.

In September, temperatures continued to be warmer than expected as the sub-tropical jet stream's more northerly position allowed a warmer southerly flow of air over Japan.

Nearly 1,500 areas in Japan had been classed as "extremely hot" days, as described by the country's Meteorological Society.

For the rain to turn into snow, the temperature has to be around the freezing point. October has seen the heat ease slightly, but it has still been a warmer-than-average month.

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Mount Fuji, which is southwest of Tokyo, is Japan's highest mountain at 3,776m (12,460 ft). It is covered in snow for most of the year but during the July-September, which is the hiking season more than 220,000 visitors trudge up its steep, rocky slopes. Many climb through the night to see the sunrise from the summit.

The volcano erupted just over 300 years ago and is quite visible from the Japanese capital on a clear day.

(With inputs from agencies)