What's behind S. Korea's unusually long cold waves this winter?
South Korea experienced record-breaking snowfall and freezing temperatures this winter, with Korea Meteorological Administration data showing longer cold wave periods than usual.
According to the KMA, many parts of Korea saw cold waves as short as six days and as long as eight days or more this winter.
This weather phenomenon deviated from Korea's typical cold wave pattern, where winter temperatures usually follow a cycle of three cold days followed by four relatively warmer days.
The first cold wave warning of the year was observed on Jan. 8. From January to February, there were three periods when Seoul recorded below-average temperatures for more than three days. Between Jan. 7 and 12, Seoul saw temperatures drop as low as minus 10 degrees Celsius, which was well below previous years' recorded average of minus 2 C.
Seoul also saw an eight-day cold wave period from Feb. 3, when morning wind chill temperatures as low as minus 19 C were also observed on Feb. 4. Another cold wave period began on Feb. 17, forecast to last eight days through Monday.
This change in cold weather periods was also observed in southern parts of the country where winter temperatures are relatively warmer. In Busan, average temperatures as low as minus 4 C were observed for seven days from Jan. 7 to 13. In Gwangju, temperatures 6 C lower than average temperatures were observed for six days and eight days, respectively, between Jan. 7 to 12 and Feb. 3 to 10.
KMA official Gong Sang-min explained to The Korea Herald that this winter's unusually long cold waves were caused by atmospheric blocking, a phenomenon occurring when a high-pressure system blocks the normal west-to-east flow of weather systems.
'For winters in Korea to observe both cold and relatively warm temperatures, the low-pressure system must hover around the northern parts of the Korean Peninsula while the high-pressure system hovers around the southern parts,' Gong explained. 'However, the high-pressure system and the low-pressure system were mostly observed in the west and east of the Korean peninsula this winter, trapping the cold air above Korea for a number of days.'
According to the KMA, this weather phenomenon was expected to continue nationwide through Monday, with nationwide morning lows ranging between minus 12 C and minus 2 C, and daytime temperatures between 3 C and 8 C.
The atmospheric pressure systems are expected to shift from Tuesday, with temperatures closer to previous averages. Daytime temperatures nationwide are expected to reach 7 C on Tuesday and increase further starting Thursday. Through the weekend, average nationwide daytime temperatures are estimated to reach as high as 13 C.
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