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December 4, 2024 - Record Snow in Korea
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Wintry weather arrived in full force in South Korea. In the last week of November 2024, a storm brought record-breaking accumulations of snow to Seoul. The heavy snow disrupted travel and damaged structures in the nation’s capital and surrounding areas.
On the morning of November 27, residents of Seoul awoke to 16.5 centimeters (6.5 inches) of new snow. That amount already surpassed the previous daily snowfall record for Seoul in November since records began in 1907, according to news reports. A storm in 1972 brought 12.4 centimeters (4.9 inches) to the city, the Korea Meteorological Administration told news outlets.
Yet the snow kept flying. By the morning of November 28, the weather agency reported accumulations of 28.6 centimeters (11.3 inches) in Seoul and 43 centimeters (17 inches) in Suwon, a city about 35 kilometers (22 miles) to the south.
When clouds cleared on November 29, the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this false-color image, revealing a broad coating of snow across the Korean Peninsula. In this type of image, snow looks bright blue, clouds are white, vegetation appears green, deep water shows up as dark blue, and roads and cities take on a gray tone. Seoul is located near the southernmost dip in the Han River where the snow appears grayish blue.
An influx of cold air from the north had moved over the relatively warm Yellow Sea, causing heavy snowfall to form in the region, according to news reports. The temperature difference between the air and the sea surface was more profound than normal due to unusual warmth in recent weeks, officials said, which may have factored into the storm’s intensity.
Those who braved the weather around Seoul witnessed landmarks transformed into a winter wonderland. However, the storm grounded hundreds of flights across the country, kept dozens of ferries in port, and snarled traffic. The weight of the snow also toppled trees and damaged greenhouses and other agricultural facilities in areas surrounding Seoul, according to reports.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 11/30/2024
Resolutions:
1km (145.9 KB), 500m (384.6 KB), 250m (484.3 KB)
Bands Used: 7,2,1
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Wintry weather arrived in full force in South Korea. In the last week of November 2024, a storm brought record-breaking accumulations of snow to Seoul. The heavy snow disrupted travel and damaged structures in the nation’s capital and surrounding areas.
On the morning of November 27, residents of Seoul awoke to 16.5 centimeters (6.5 inches) of new snow. That amount already surpassed the previous daily snowfall record for Seoul in November since records began in 1907, according to news reports. A storm in 1972 brought 12.4 centimeters (4.9 inches) to the city, the Korea Meteorological Administration told news outlets.
Yet the snow kept flying. By the morning of November 28, the weather agency reported accumulations of 28.6 centimeters (11.3 inches) in Seoul and 43 centimeters (17 inches) in Suwon, a city about 35 kilometers (22 miles) to the south.
When clouds cleared on November 29, the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this false-color image, revealing a broad coating of snow across the Korean Peninsula. In this type of image, snow looks bright blue, clouds are white, vegetation appears green, deep water shows up as dark blue, and roads and cities take on a gray tone. Seoul is located near the southernmost dip in the Han River where the snow appears grayish blue.
An influx of cold air from the north had moved over the relatively warm Yellow Sea, causing heavy snowfall to form in the region, according to news reports. The temperature difference between the air and the sea surface was more profound than normal due to unusual warmth in recent weeks, officials said, which may have factored into the storm’s intensity.
Those who braved the weather around Seoul witnessed landmarks transformed into a winter wonderland. However, the storm grounded hundreds of flights across the country, kept dozens of ferries in port, and snarled traffic. The weight of the snow also toppled trees and damaged greenhouses and other agricultural facilities in areas surrounding Seoul, according to reports.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 11/30/2024
Resolutions:
1km (145.9 KB), 500m (384.6 KB), 250m (484.3 KB)
Bands Used: 7,2,1
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
