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A heat wave swept Korea on Thursday and a heat wave warning was issued for the first time for Seoul and other central regions.
The high temperatures are expected to last through Friday and only fall when it starts raining on Saturday. The mercury is then expected to soar again after the weekend.
The Korea Meteorological Administration said on Thursday, "Korea has been on the rim of a northern Pacific high pressure zone that is hot and humid. Recently the high pressure has expanded to cover the entire nation and strong sunlight has begun scorching Korea as there is less cloud coverage."
That means the heat wave, with the mercury soaring past 33 degrees Celsius, is expected to blanket Korea until Friday. It also means so-called tropical nights with nighttime temperatures staying above 25 degrees.
The KMA has been testing its new heat wave warning system since July. The system issues an advisory when temperatures are expected to peak above 33 degrees and an alert when temps of more than 35 degrees are expected.
A heat alert was issued for 46 cities and districts nationwide until Friday. A heat advisory was also issued for those regions except Jeju Island, Incheon and some northwestern areas of Gyeonggi province.
The KMA is predicting a scorcher for Friday with the high in major cities expected to be hotter than Thursday's high.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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