2023 warmest year of all time for S. Korea

The year 2023 was the warmest of all time for South Korea as global warming heated up the Korean Peninsula to reach the average temperature of 13.7 degrees Celsius last year, the state weather agency said on Wednesday.

It marks the highest annual mean temperature since 1973, the year considered the starting point for weather records in South Korea when the country’s meteorological networks were significantly beefed up, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

Last year’s temperature exceeds the previous top record of 13.4 degrees set in 2016, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The record-breaking temperatures last year had been expected, given the mean temperatures nationwide were higher than average years all throughout January-November, and six months ranked within the top 10 temperatures last year.

Last month, the weather stayed warm by and large, excluding when a cold snap gripped the country for about a week in mid-December, and the average temperature nationwide recorded below-freezing temperatures from December 16 to 25.

Many parts of the region recorded the highest temperature of the month, with some going above 20 degrees in the daytime on December 8.

Meanwhile, the average annual rainfall recorded 1,740.3 mm last year, the second highest since 2003, the KMA said, citing high levels of precipitation in May and during the summertime.