Japan logged its hottest September since records began in 1898, hitting an all-time monthly high for the third straight month, the weather agency said Monday.
The average temperature in September was 2.66 degrees Celsius higher than the overall monthly average recorded between 1991 and 2020, exceeding the previous record in 2012 that saw the mercury rise 1.51 C above average, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The agency said the three-month periods for spring — March, April and May — and summer — June, July and August — were also the hottest on record, with the high temperatures expected to continue in the winter through February.
According to the weather agency, the country was hit by warm air last month due to the effects of a high-pressure system in the Pacific and climate change.
"We can't believe just how high temperatures got," a representative from the agency said. "It became a record-breaking phenomenon after multiple factors overlapped on top of climate change."
A total of 385 out of 914 locations across the country logged temperatures of 35 C or higher in September, the second-largest number after 485 did so in 2020.
The Sea of Japan's surface temperature was 1.6 C above average for the month, the hottest since records began in 1982. There were just two typhoons in September, a record-tying low, which meant cold, deep ocean water did not mix with the warmer surface water, the agency said.
Sweltering temperatures have been reported across the world this year. The United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration said earlier this month that average global temperatures in the three months spanning June through August were the hottest since records began in 1880.