South Korea records all-time high temperature of 42.5°C as global heatwave signals accelerating climate crisis

South Korea's southeastern city of Yangsan reached 42.5 degrees Celsius on August 2, 2026 — the country's highest temperature since national weather records began over a century ago — marking the fifth consecutive day temperatures there exceeded 40°C. The Korea Meteorological Administration reported that the average annual number of heatwave days has more than doubled over the past five years to 19, compared with an average of just eight days in the 1970s. The extreme heat coincided with wildfires in Greece, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, and dangerous fire conditions across parts of the western United States, with scientists attributing the intensification of heatwaves to human-driven climate change.