Last week, Japan’s meteorologists noted that Mount Fuji’s lack of snow this year is the longest the active volcano has been snowless since records began in 1894. Yutaka Katsuta, a forecaster at the Kofu Local Meteorological Office, informed AFP that the previous record for the latest snowfall was October 26 in both 1955 and 2016. On the morning of November 7, 2024, Mount Fuji finally saw some snow on its peak.
According to the Kofu Regional Meteorological Observatory, staff confirmed seeing snowfall near Mount Fuji’s summit this morning at around 6 a.m. This sighting comes 36 days later than the average first snowfall, and 33 days later than last year’s sighting on October 5.
The Long Absence of Snow Follows Extreme Summer Temperatures
This record-breaking absence of snow on Mount Fuji arrives after Japan’s hottest summer for two consecutive years. On September 3, The Asahi Shimbun reported that this summer’s temperatures averaged 1.76 degrees higher than normal, with locations such as Sano in Tochigi Prefecture and Kuwana in Mie Prefecture hitting 41 and 40.4 degrees Celsius respectively in late July and early August.
NHK reported that the abnormal heat significantly harmed Japan’s agricultural and fishing industries. Thousands also suffered from heatstroke and the number of deaths were in the hundreds.
A Cause for Public Concern
Kofu Regional Meteorological Observatory’s observation and forecast manager, Mamoru Matsumoto, informed NHK that the observatory had been receiving many inquiries from the public regarding this abnormally long wait for snow. While the observatory is glad to finally see some white flakes, the delay remains a cause for concern.
