Balmy temperatures mark start of rollercoaster weather

The unusually warm weather is expected to peak on Wednesday, with the midday high in the greater Seoul area, including Gyeonggi and Incheon, rising to 17 degrees Celsius (66 degrees Fahrenheit).

Visitors dip their feet into the waters of Songdo Beach in Pohang, North Gyeongsang, on Tuesday. Pohang's midday high reached 17.9 degrees Celsius (64.2 degrees Fahrenheit) on the same day.[NEWS1]

Korea greeted springlike weather on Tuesday as people returned from the four-day Lunar New Year holiday.

The unusually warm weather is expected to peak on Wednesday, with the midday high in the greater Seoul area, including Gyeonggi and Incheon, rising to 17 degrees Celsius (66 degrees Fahrenheit).

The nation is anticipated to experience drastic temperature fluctuations for the rest of the month, as the mercury is expected to plunge after rain falls on the peninsula on Thursday.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), rain is expected to arrive in the greater Seoul area and parts of Gangwon on Thursday dawn and expand to the rest of the country in the morning.

The temperature hike is anticipated to last through Wednesday as a warm southwesterly arrives on the peninsula.

At 4 p.m. Tuesday, the midday high in Seoul hit 13.7 degrees Celsius. According to the KMA, the average high in the capital this time of year is 5.8 degrees Celsius; Jeju’s midday high reached 19.7 degrees Celsius and 16.3 degrees Celsius in Daejeon.

Last Sunday, which marked Ipchun, was recorded as the warmest such day in Seoul, with a temperature of 12.2 degrees Celsius. Ipchun signifies the onset of spring.

Air pollution levels in the nation are expected to improve. On Tuesday, fine dust concentrations in the greater Seoul area, Gangwon, Sejong and South Chungcheong remained within the “bad” level — the third level of the four-tier system — according to Air Korea, an air quality tracking website run by the Korea Environment Corporation.

On Wednesday, fine dust concentrations across the peninsula are expected to drop to the “moderate” or “good” level.

A passerby watches blooming flowers in Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang, on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

As warm weather continues in the country, spring flowers are also blooming earlier than usual. According to the KMA, plum blossoms were spotted in Changwon, South Gyeongsang, on Monday, about 13 days earlier than normal.

Plum blossoms bloomed in Busan last Tuesday, 12 days earlier than in average years.

The KMA said morning lows will plunge back to subzero temperatures after rain falls on Wednesday. On Thursday, morning lows in Seoul may drop to as low as minus 2 degrees Celsius.

Temperatures across the country will gradually rise over the weekend, with midday highs in the greater Seoul area expected to hit as high as 16 degrees Celsius.

The KMA forecasts rain or snow will fall on the peninsula early next week.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]