Mount Fuji, the tallest mountain in Japan, last erupted about 300 years ago. The symmetrical volcano has been immortalised in countless paintings. Tens of thousands of hikers trudge up its steep, rocky slopes every year. Many climb through the night for the sunrise.
But the mountain’s bare slopes have become a cause for concern. Because of high temperatures during Japan’s summer season this year, Mount Fuji remains snowless on Tuesday, marking the longest period since records began 130 years ago.
In 2024, no snowfall had yet been observed on Mount Fuji, according to Yutaka Katsuta, a forecaster at Kofu Local Meteorological Office. This year’s data has beat the previous record of October 26 – recorded a couple of times already, in 1955 and 2016.
Japan noting the joint hottest summer on record
Temperatures had been high this summer in Japan. The elevated temperatures carried themselves into September, deterring cold air, noted Katsuta. He said that climate change is likely to have a degree of impact on the delay.
This year, Japan noted the joint hottest summer season on record – equalling the level seen in 2023. Several parts of the globe also recorded on unprecedented temperature rises. The raging climate crisis is triggering natural disasters of much higher intensities.
Mount Fuji is covered in snow for most part of the year, but during the July-September hiking season more than 220,000 people hike up the slopes. This year, nonetheless, Mount Fuji noted less climbers as authorities introduced an entry fee and a daily cap to combat overtourism.
