Weather tracker: Heat records fall as Japan and South Korea swelter

Fears grow as August typically hottest month for both, while eastern Australia becomes rare winter wonderland

The heat continues in Japan and South Korea, after both countries experienced their warmest Junes on record and hit the same benchmark for July.

In Japan, the national temperature record fell on Wednesday, as the city of Tamba in western Honshu reached 41.2C, breaking the previous record from 2020 by 0.1C. The same day local temperature records were broken in 39 locations – including in Kyoto, which reached 40C for the first time – with almost a third of the Japan Meteorological Agency’s weather stations reporting highs above 35C. This is the third year in a row that the July average temperature record has been broken, with July 2025 closing out at 2.89C above the 1991-2020 average.