VOA新闻杂志2024--Late Snow on Japan's Mount Fuji Sets a Record

A national symbol of Japan, the respected Mount¹ Fuji usually has a cap of snow by early October. This year, weather experts said snowfall on the top of the mountain took place later than it has since records have been kept.

Last year, snow covered the top of the mountain on October 5. But this year, the first snowfall was on November 6, making this year's snowcap the latest to form since 1894 when records started.

The Kofu weather station declares the news every year. Officials at the Kofu observatory² confirmed snow near the 3,776-meter top of the country's tallest volcano³.

The office explained that the "first snowfall" on Mount Fuji is the point when the observatory staff can see that all or part of the mountain is covered with snow for the first time after summer.

Mamoru Matsumoto is an official of the Kofu observatory office. He said that Mount Fuji's first snowfall has been delayed in recent years although the reasons are still unclear.

"I feel relieved⁴ to finally see the snow," he added.

"The temperature at the Fuji summit⁵ has been high since October, so I could foresee quite a big delay in the snowfall, which was giving me an uneasy⁶ feeling."

Unusually warm weather prevented rainfall from turning to snow this October. The average temperature on the mountain's peak reached a record of 1.6 degrees Celsius⁷ compared to the October average of -2 degrees Celsius, official data showed.

Maria Gabriel, a visitor from Texas, came to Japan with plans to see the sacred mountain. She told Reuters, "It's beautiful with the snow, and that was kind of what our expectations were coming (to Japan)," she said, adding that the mountain's snowcapped image was famous worldwide.

Words in This Story

symbol - n. an action, object, event, or the like, that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality

cap - n. a covering placed on the top of something

staff - n. regular workers in an office

relieved - adj. feeling relaxed and happy because something difficult or unpleasant has been stopped, avoided, or made easier

peak - n. the high point of something tall, especially a mountain

1 mount   

n.山峰，乘用马，框，衬纸；vi.增长，骑上（马）；vt.提升，爬上，装备

参考例句：

• Their debts continued to mount up.他们的债务不断增加。
• She is the first woman who steps on the top of Mount Jolmo Lungma.她是第一个登上珠穆朗玛峰的女人。

2 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。

3 volcano   

n.火山

参考例句：

• The volcano unexpectedly blew up early in the morning.火山一早突然爆发了。
• It is most risky to go and examine an active volcano.去探察活火山是非常危险的。

4 relieved   

a.如释重负的

参考例句：

• You'll be relieved to know your jobs are safe. 现在知道你们的工作保住了，可以放心了。
• Your coming relieved me of the bother of writing a long letter. 你来了，省去我写长信的麻烦了。

5 summit   

n.最高点，峰顶；最高级会议；极点

参考例句：

• They climbed up the mountain and reached the summit.他们爬山，最终达到了山顶。
• The summit of the mountain is lost in the cloud and mist.山顶隐没在云雾之中。

6 uneasy   

adj.心神不安的，担心的，令人不安的

参考例句：

• He feels uneasy today.他今天心里感到不安。
• She had an uneasy feeling that they were still following her.她有一种他们仍在跟踪她的不安感觉。

7 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。