{"id":13551,"date":"2026-11-04T10:27:08","date_gmt":"2026-11-04T10:27:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=13551"},"modified":"2026-11-04T10:27:08","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T10:27:08","slug":"from-t-shirts-to-padded-jackets-why-koreas-october-weather-swung-so-wildly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=13551","title":{"rendered":"From T-shirts to padded jackets: Why Korea’s October weather swung so wildly"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Foreign tourists wearing padded jackets watch a reenactment of a royal guard inspection ceremony at Gyeongbok Palace in Jongno District, Seoul, Oct. 29. Yonhap<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Koreans went from wearing short sleeves to pulling out padded winter jackets last month as temperatures swung dramatically between summer-like heat and early winter chills. The reason, meteorologists say, was a massive high-pressure system thousands of kilometers away over Russia’s Ural Mountains.<\/p>\n

The atmospheric phenomenon, known as “Ural blocking,” disrupted the usual flow of weather systems, allowing cold Arctic air to surge south toward the Korean Peninsula. Scientists say rapid warming in the Arctic may have helped intensify the disruption by weakening the jet stream that normally helps contain frigid air in northern latitudes.<\/p>\n

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) released its analysis of October’s climate conditions on Wednesday, identifying extreme temperature variability as the month’s defining characteristic.<\/p>\n

The difference between the warmest and coldest daily average temperatures nationwide reached 14 degrees Celsius, the fourth-largest October fluctuation on record. The average temperature stood at 22.1 degrees on Oct. 12 before plunging to 8.1 degrees on Oct. 28.<\/p>\n

Seoul experienced an especially remarkable burst of heat on Oct. 12, when the daytime high reached 30.1 degrees Celsius, making it the hottest October day in the capital since modern weather observations began in 1907.<\/p>\n

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A foreign tourist wearing a short-sleeved shirt walks through Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul on Oct. 12. Yonhap<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Temperatures then fluctuated sharply. The nationwide daily average fell from 19.8 degrees Celsius on Oct. 18 to 9.8 degrees just four days later. It rebounded to 16.9 degrees on Oct. 25 before plunging again to 8.1 degrees three days later, bringing an early taste of winter.<\/p>\n

How weather system over Russia sent cold air into Korea
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The dramatic swings were driven by changes in atmospheric circulation.<\/p>\n

In mid-October, warm air flowed into Korea along a high-pressure circulation pattern in the upper atmosphere. Later in the month, however, a persistent high-pressure system developed over northern Europe and the Ural Mountains, creating a blocking pattern that disrupted the normal west-to-east movement of weather systems.<\/p>\n

The disruption allowed cold air to move rapidly southward over the Korean Peninsula.<\/p>\n

“When Ural blocking occurs, low-pressure troughs carrying cold air frequently move down toward Korea, causing sudden cold spells,” said Lee Myong-in, a professor at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology.<\/p>\n

Alternating warm and cold spells are common in autumn as high- and low-pressure systems pass over the peninsula. But the blocking pattern made October’s cold spells particularly intense.<\/p>\n

Scientists point to Arctic warming as one possible factor behind the stronger blocking.<\/p>\n

The jet stream, a band of powerful winds high in the atmosphere, normally acts as a barrier that helps keep Arctic cold air confined to northern regions. As the Arctic warms rapidly and ice melts, the temperature difference between the polar region and lower latitudes narrows, potentially weakening the jet stream.<\/p>\n

A weaker jet stream can develop larger north-south bends, slowing the movement of weather systems and allowing persistent blocking patterns to form.<\/p>\n

The blocking pattern also contributed to unusually frequent rainfall during the second half of October.<\/p>\n

Nationwide precipitation totaled 108.5 millimeters, about 1.7 times the average for the 1991\u20132020 period. Nearly all of it \u2014 108 millimeters \u2014 fell after the middle of the month. The country recorded an average of 4.3 rainy days during the final third of October, the highest figure on record for that period.<\/p>\n

An unusually strong El Ni\u00f1o, with sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific more than 2 degrees above normal, also influenced regional atmospheric circulation. Reduced convection over the western Pacific helped a high-pressure system develop southeast of Korea.<\/p>\n

Warm, moisture-laden air moving along the edge of that system collided with cold air drawn south by the blocking pattern, producing rain clouds over the peninsula.<\/p>\n

The unsettled weather is expected to continue into early November.<\/p>\n

Rain is forecast across the country on Thursday, with around 5 millimeters expected in the Seoul metropolitan area, 5 to 20 millimeters in the Chungcheong provinces and North Gyeongsang Province, and 10 to 40 millimeters in the Jeolla provinces, South Gyeongsang Province and Jeju Island.<\/p>\n

Once the rain clears, another surge of cold air is expected to send temperatures sharply lower.<\/p>\n

On Nov. 7, which marks “Ipdong,” the traditional Korean calendar’s beginning of winter, morning lows are forecast to range from minus 4 to 5 degrees Celsius nationwide. Seoul is expected to drop to minus 1 degree, marking the capital’s first subzero temperature of the autumn season.<\/p>\n

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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Foreign tourists wearing padded jackets watch a reenactment of a royal guard inspection ceremony at Gyeongbok Palace in Jongno District, Seoul, Oct. 29. Yonhap Koreans went from wearing short sleeves to pulling out padded winter jackets last month as temperatures swung dramatically between summer-like heat and early winter chills. The reason, meteorologists say, was a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-korea"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t