Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021

Name: Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021
Start: 2021-01-20
End: 2021-01-27
Location: Japan, Korea, South, Russia, Korea, North, China

Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021: 169 records at 99 stations, peak on 22 January 2021. Closed.

Data as of 2026-10-17. Last revised 17 October 2026 (2026-10-17).

Key Facts

Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021 set or tied 169 station records at 99 stations.
It ran from 20 January 2021 to 27 January 2021 (8 days) and its peak day was 22 January 2021.
Status: closed.
Makurazaki set a daily record high minimum temperature of 15.1 C (59.2 F) on 22 January 2021.
The busiest day was 22 January 2021 with 50 records.
The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 73 years.

Footprint

20 to 27 January 2021

The area covered by Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021 is outlined, with 18 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.

Footprint of Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021: stations that set records in the event
Station	Type	Value	Date
Makurazaki	Record high minimum temperature	15.1 C (59.2 F)	2021-01-22
Hita	Record high maximum temperature	19.2 C (66.6 F)	2021-01-22
Kobe	Record high maximum temperature	17.6 C (63.7 F)	2021-01-26
Saga	Record high maximum temperature	17.8 C (64.0 F)	2021-01-21
Hiroshima	Record high minimum temperature	7.9 C (46.2 F)	2021-01-22
Oita	Record high minimum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	2021-01-22
Choshi	Record high minimum temperature	8.7 C (47.7 F)	2021-01-24
Maizuru Reg Met HQ	Record high minimum temperature	6.9 C (44.4 F)	2021-01-24
Kirovskij	Record high minimum temperature	-9.8 C (14.4 F)	2021-01-26
Benxi	Record high maximum temperature	8.8 C (47.8 F)	2021-01-24
Anucino	Record high minimum temperature	-8.2 C (17.2 F)	2021-01-26
Tomakomai	Record high maximum temperature	8.0 C (46.4 F)	2021-01-27
Kumamoto	Record high maximum temperature	21.0 C (69.8 F)	2021-01-22
Chunggang	Record high maximum temperature	6.5 C (43.7 F)	2021-01-26
Matsue	Record high maximum temperature	14.9 C (58.8 F)	2021-01-21
Hitoyoshi	Record high maximum temperature	20.0 C (68.0 F)	2021-01-22
Nara	Record high maximum temperature	17.4 C (63.3 F)	2021-01-26
Aburatsu	Record high minimum temperature	12.1 C (53.8 F)	2021-01-26

Records per Day

Peak day 50

Records set or tied each day from 20 January 2021 to 27 January 2021. The most in one day was 50 on 22 January 2021.

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced

Top records of Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021 ranked by margin
Hita, 01-22	5.1 C (9.2 F)
Kumamoto, 01-22	4.9 C (8.8 F)
Makurazaki, 01-22	4.4 C (7.9 F)
Maizuru Reg Met HQ, 01-24	2.9 C (5.2 F)
Hitoyoshi, 01-25	2.9 C (5.2 F)
Hitoyoshi, 01-22	2.8 C (5.0 F)
Kobe, 01-26	2.6 C (4.7 F)
Matsue, 01-21	2.3 C (4.1 F)
Saga, 01-21	1.9 C (3.4 F)
Oita, 01-22	1.7 C (3.1 F)
Aburatsu, 01-26	1.5 C (2.7 F)
Hiroshima, 01-22	1.3 C (2.3 F)
Tomakomai, 01-27	1.3 C (2.3 F)
Kirovskij, 01-26	1.2 C (2.2 F)
Benxi, 01-24	1.2 C (2.2 F)

Margin is how far the new value is beyond the record it replaced. Ties are not shown.

Margin Against Age of the Broken Record

169 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right.

Margin against age of the broken record in Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021
Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
4.4	67
5.1	54
2.6	64
0.6	73
2.9	48
1.3	67
1.9	67
1.7	67
1.2	45
1.2	42
1.3	64
0.8	45
4.9	33
0.5	42
2.3	49
1.0	64
1.1	62
2.9	49
2.8	48
1.5	62
1.2	54
0.4	64
0.8	64
1.0	62
1.0	62
4.8	26
0.1	37
0.4	62
1.3	48
0.1	64
3.7	37
0.2	62
1.4	48
0.8	54
1.6	42
0.3	62
4.0	38
1.1	54
0.7	52
1.6	42
3.7	26
2.6	33
2.8	30
4.6	33
1.9	41
1.5	41
1.0	52
1.2	48
2.2	33
2.5	42
1.7	42
1.2	11
1.1	42
0.6	49
0.4	48
0.7	48
0.7	46
2.1	33
0.3	54
2.2	48
1.7	46
2.6	33
0.1	48
0.1	49
0.8	42
0.8	49
1.4	32
2.8	26
2.4	26
1.9	33
1.8	48
1.3	33
2.3	26
1.3	33
1.8	32
1.3	48
3.0	32
4.4	6
0.3	41
1.4	28
1.6	22
1.6	26
1.1	33
1.4	33
0.8	33
1.8	26
0.7	33
0.7	33
0.3	33
1.1	22
1.9	32
2.1	32
1.9	33
0.3	42
0.4	33
0.6	33
0.4	32
0.8	26
0.4	33
1.2	26
1.0	26
1.3	26
0.6	33
2.0	30
2.9	20
1.7	22
2.1	13
1.8	22
0.2	28
1.0	22
0.5	26
0.6	26
0.6	26
3.2	6
2.2	7
0.1	33
0.4	26
0.6	33
2.2	14
0.6	14
1.6	19
0.8	22
0.3	26
0.4	22
1.3	20
0.2	14
0.2	14
3.1	1
1.9	4
0.5	14
2.4	1
2.7	2
0.8	19
0.6	11
0.9	12
0.5	11
1.3	7
1.3	7
1.1	8
1.8	11
1.6	6
0.2	14
0.8	4
0.8	1
0.6	6
0.8	6
1.7	6
1.6	6
1.3	6
2.4	1
2.2	6
1.7	8
0.2	11
0.2	12
0.7	8
0.8	6
1.9	6
2.1	1
1.3	4
0.1	11
0.5	1
0.3	1
1.1	1
0.7	1
0.2	1
0.7	1
0.4	6
0.5	8
0.9	1

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event

Station records in Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021 compared with similar events
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 16 January to 14 February 2024	9,869 records
Heat wave in United States, 28 January to 24 February 2026	6,528 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 24 May to 19 June 2020	5,047 records
Heat wave in United States and Mexico, 26 March to 17 April 2021	3,669 records
Heat wave in Germany and 49 other countries, 18 December 2021 to 15 January 2022	3,626 records
Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021 (this event)	169 records

Every Record Set

20 of 169

Every record set or tied during Heat wave in Japan and 4 other countries, 20 to 27 January 2021, in date order
Date	Station	Record	Value	Margin	Years stood	Significance
2021-01-21	Saga	Record high maximum temperature	17.8 C (64.0 F)	1.9 C (3.4 F)	67	32 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-21	Matsue	Record high maximum temperature	14.9 C (58.8 F)	2.3 C (4.1 F)	49	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-22	Makurazaki	Record high minimum temperature	15.1 C (59.2 F)	4.4 C (7.9 F)	67	39 of 100 (Notable)
2021-01-22	Hita	Record high maximum temperature	19.2 C (66.6 F)	5.1 C (9.2 F)	54	36 of 100 (Notable)
2021-01-22	Hiroshima	Record high minimum temperature	7.9 C (46.2 F)	1.3 C (2.3 F)	67	32 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-22	Oita	Record high minimum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	67	32 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-22	Kumamoto	Record high maximum temperature	21.0 C (69.8 F)	4.9 C (8.8 F)	33	29 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-22	Hitoyoshi	Record high maximum temperature	20.0 C (68.0 F)	2.8 C (5.0 F)	48	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-24	Choshi	Record high minimum temperature	8.7 C (47.7 F)	0.6 C (1.1 F)	73	32 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-24	Maizuru Reg Met HQ	Record high minimum temperature	6.9 C (44.4 F)	2.9 C (5.2 F)	48	32 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-24	Benxi	Record high maximum temperature	8.8 C (47.8 F)	1.2 C (2.2 F)	42	30 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-25	Kumamoto	Record high maximum temperature	18.4 C (65.1 F)	1.1 C (2.0 F)	62	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-25	Hitoyoshi	Record high maximum temperature	18.7 C (65.7 F)	2.9 C (5.2 F)	49	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-26	Kobe	Record high maximum temperature	17.6 C (63.7 F)	2.6 C (4.7 F)	64	35 of 100 (Notable)
2021-01-26	Kirovskij	Record high minimum temperature	-9.8 C (14.4 F)	1.2 C (2.2 F)	45	31 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-26	Anucino	Record high minimum temperature	-8.2 C (17.2 F)	0.8 C (1.4 F)	45	30 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-26	Chunggang	Record high maximum temperature	6.5 C (43.7 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	42	29 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-26	Nara	Record high maximum temperature	17.4 C (63.3 F)	1.0 C (1.8 F)	64	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-26	Aburatsu	Record high minimum temperature	12.1 C (53.8 F)	1.5 C (2.7 F)	62	28 of 100 (Routine)
2021-01-27	Tomakomai	Record high maximum temperature	8.0 C (46.4 F)	1.3 C (2.3 F)	64	30 of 100 (Routine)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 169 records the event counts. The counts above use the full total.

Download the Data

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily (GHCN-Daily). Records are computed by World Extreme Weather Monitor and are not official NOAA products. (US Government open data (NOAA NCEI)) Data as of 2026-10-17. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.

Date	Records
2021-01-20	1
2021-01-21	25
2021-01-22	50
2021-01-23	12
2021-01-24	22
2021-01-25	21
2021-01-26	29
2021-01-27	9

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
4.4	67
5.1	54
2.6	64
0.6	73
2.9	48
1.3	67
1.9	67
1.7	67
1.2	45
1.2	42
1.3	64
0.8	45
4.9	33
0.5	42
2.3	49
1.0	64
1.1	62
2.9	49
2.8	48
1.5	62
1.2	54
0.4	64
0.8	64
1.0	62
1.0	62
4.8	26
0.1	37
0.4	62
1.3	48
0.1	64
3.7	37
0.2	62
1.4	48
0.8	54
1.6	42
0.3	62
4.0	38
1.1	54
0.7	52
1.6	42
3.7	26
2.6	33
2.8	30
4.6	33
1.9	41
1.5	41
1.0	52
1.2	48
2.2	33
2.5	42
1.7	42
1.2	11
1.1	42
0.6	49
0.4	48
0.7	48
0.7	46
2.1	33
0.3	54
2.2	48
1.7	46
2.6	33
0.1	48
0.1	49
0.8	42
0.8	49
1.4	32
2.8	26
2.4	26
1.9	33
1.8	48
1.3	33
2.3	26
1.3	33
1.8	32
1.3	48
3.0	32
4.4	6
0.3	41
1.4	28
1.6	22
1.6	26
1.1	33
1.4	33
0.8	33
1.8	26
0.7	33
0.7	33
0.3	33
1.1	22
1.9	32
2.1	32
1.9	33
0.3	42
0.4	33
0.6	33
0.4	32
0.8	26
0.4	33
1.2	26
1.0	26
1.3	26
0.6	33
2.0	30
2.9	20
1.7	22
2.1	13
1.8	22
0.2	28
1.0	22
0.5	26
0.6	26
0.6	26
3.2	6
2.2	7
0.1	33
0.4	26
0.6	33
2.2	14
0.6	14
1.6	19
0.8	22
0.3	26
0.4	22
1.3	20
0.2	14
0.2	14
3.1	1
1.9	4
0.5	14
2.4	1
2.7	2
0.8	19
0.6	11
0.9	12
0.5	11
1.3	7
1.3	7
1.1	8
1.8	11
1.6	6
0.2	14
0.8	4
0.8	1
0.6	6
0.8	6
1.7	6
1.6	6
1.3	6
2.4	1
2.2	6
1.7	8
0.2	11
0.2	12
0.7	8
0.8	6
1.9	6
2.1	1
1.3	4
0.1	11
0.5	1
0.3	1
1.1	1
0.7	1
0.2	1
0.7	1
0.4	6
0.5	8
0.9	1

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
4.4	67
5.1	54
2.6	64
0.6	73
2.9	48
1.3	67
1.9	67
1.7	67
1.2	45
1.2	42
1.3	64
0.8	45
4.9	33
0.5	42
2.3	49
1.0	64
1.1	62
2.9	49
2.8	48
1.5	62
1.2	54
0.4	64
0.8	64
1.0	62
1.0	62
4.8	26
0.1	37
0.4	62
1.3	48
0.1	64
3.7	37
0.2	62
1.4	48
0.8	54
1.6	42
0.3	62
4.0	38
1.1	54
0.7	52
1.6	42
3.7	26
2.6	33
2.8	30
4.6	33
1.9	41
1.5	41
1.0	52
1.2	48
2.2	33
2.5	42
1.7	42
1.2	11
1.1	42
0.6	49
0.4	48
0.7	48
0.7	46
2.1	33
0.3	54
2.2	48
1.7	46
2.6	33
0.1	48
0.1	49
0.8	42
0.8	49
1.4	32
2.8	26
2.4	26
1.9	33
1.8	48
1.3	33
2.3	26
1.3	33
1.8	32
1.3	48
3.0	32
4.4	6
0.3	41
1.4	28
1.6	22
1.6	26
1.1	33
1.4	33
0.8	33
1.8	26
0.7	33
0.7	33
0.3	33
1.1	22
1.9	32
2.1	32
1.9	33
0.3	42
0.4	33
0.6	33
0.4	32
0.8	26
0.4	33
1.2	26
1.0	26
1.3	26
0.6	33
2.0	30
2.9	20
1.7	22
2.1	13
1.8	22
0.2	28
1.0	22
0.5	26
0.6	26
0.6	26
3.2	6
2.2	7
0.1	33
0.4	26
0.6	33
2.2	14
0.6	14
1.6	19
0.8	22
0.3	26
0.4	22
1.3	20
0.2	14
0.2	14
3.1	1
1.9	4
0.5	14
2.4	1
2.7	2
0.8	19
0.6	11
0.9	12
0.5	11
1.3	7
1.3	7
1.1	8
1.8	11
1.6	6
0.2	14
0.8	4
0.8	1
0.6	6
0.8	6
1.7	6
1.6	6
1.3	6
2.4	1
2.2	6
1.7	8
0.2	11
0.2	12
0.7	8
0.8	6
1.9	6
2.1	1
1.3	4
0.1	11
0.5	1
0.3	1
1.1	1
0.7	1
0.2	1
0.7	1
0.4	6
0.5	8
0.9	1