Culture Notes: The Japanese Climate

日本の気候: The Japanese Climate

The seasons in Japan can be very different depending on where you go.

Cherry tres blossom

Naha (Okinawa): Mid-January

Tokyo: Late March

Sapporo (hokkaido): Early May

Rainy season starts:

Naha: Early May

Tokyo: Mid-June

Sapporo: No rainy season

First snowfall:

Naha: High-19.1/Low-14.3

Tokyo: High-9.8/Low-2.1

Sapporo: High-0.9/Low-7.7

August temperatures

Naha: High-30.9/Low-26.1

Tokyo: High-30.8/Low-24.2

Sapporo:High-26.1/Low-18.5

Annual precipitation

Naha

2036.7 mm

Tokyo

1466.8 mm

Sapporo

1127.6 mm

Winter is sunny and dry on the Pacific coast, but cloudy and snowy on the Sea of Japan coast. Spring is rather short because daily temperatures rise quickly and the season is cut short by the arrival of the rainy season (梅雨), which lasts for about a month and a half. Summer in most parts of Japan is hot and very humid, and almost tropical in some places. Typhoons (台風）make occasional landfalls in summer and early fall.

Temperature, including body temperature, is measured in Celcius.