South Korea - The Korea Times

Season's coldest weather grips Korea

A child plays outside on a snowy day in the city of Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, Dec. 14. NewsisKorea came under the grip of the season's coldest weather on Wednesday, with the morning lows dipping to minus 15 C in some inland areas, the state weather agency said.The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said the freezing temperatures were accompanied by strong wind, with the wind velocity reaching up to 16 meters per second in some coastal areas.In Seoul, morning lows plummeted to minus 11 C and an apparent temperature of nearly minus 20 C as of 7 a.m., the KMA said.Cars are covered with snow at an apartment complex in Wonju, Gangwon Province, northeastern Korea after heavy snowfall overnight in the region, Dec. 14. YonhapThe weather agency forecast that some northern parts of Gyeonggi Province surrounding Seoul will see the temperature drop to up to morning lows of minus 15 C.On top of the frigid cold weather, snow fell in most parts of the country overnight.People wait for buses at bus stops in Seoul amid heavy rainfall, Dec. 13. YonhapAs of 6 a.m., more than 10 centim

Dec 14, 2022

PHOTOS Cold blast hits Korea

Heavy snow forecast

Vehicles affected by snow cause congested traffic on a street in front of Suwon Station, Paldal District of the namesake city in Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday afternoon. Freezing temperatures will continue from Wednesday amid a heavy snow forecast. According to meteorologists, up to 10 centimeters of snow will blanket parts of the nation, including southern Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces, through Wednesday and temperatures will drop to minus 10 degrees Celsius. Yonhap

Dec 13, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Yellow dust advisories issued nationwide except in South Gyeongsang

Atmosphere around Seogang Bridge next to Han River in Seoul is foggy with clouds of fine dust, Sept. 29. YonhapYellow dust advisories were issued across Korea except for South Gyeongsang Province on Tuesday, with the fine dust level in Seoul hitting the highest point so far this year, authorities said.The yellow dust advisories were upgraded from "attention" to "caution," the second highest in the environmental ministry's four-notch warning system, in Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi Province surrounding the capital and Gangwon Province as of early Tuesday afternoon, the environment authorities said. All other remaining regions, except for South Gyeongsang, were under Level 1 yellow dust advisories. A Level 2 advisory is issued when a fine dust alert, a warning when the hourly concentration of PM10 is higher than 300 micrograms per cubic meter for over two hours, is already in place due to yellow sand and there's a possibility of a big-scale yellow dust-related disaster. Dust with a diameter of 10 micrometers or smaller, equal to PM10, can enter the lungs and lead to adverse health effects.A

Dec 13, 2022

Yellow dust advisories issued nationwide except in South Gyeongsang

PM orders efforts to respond to heavy snow, cold wave alert forecast

A woman strolls along a trail on Mount Namsan in Seoul, Dec. 6. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seokPrime Minister Han Duck-soo on Monday ordered government agencies to thoroughly prepare for heavy snow and a cold wave forecast across the central region later this week. Up to 5 centimeters of snow will likely fall across the central region, including Seoul, between Monday and Tuesday, and heavy snow alerts may be issued in the area later in the week as more snow is expected to fall from Tuesday to Thursday, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).This photo shows Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, Dec. 9. YonhapThe KMA also said cold wave alerts may be issued in some regions nationwide Tuesday night."Take necessary measures in advance to minimize the inconvenience people may feel, such as spraying deicing chemicals on roads, bridges and tunnels that get frozen easily," Han told the interior and transportation ministers, as well as the head of the local governments.Han also called on related ministries to look after those vulnerable to snow and cold weather, such as the hom

Dec 12, 2022

PM orders efforts to respond to heavy snow, cold wave alert forecast

Army to retire scout dog Dalgwan famed for finding missing girl in 2019

This photo, provided by Sgt. Maj. Park Sang-jin, shows military dog Dalgwan, who retired from service on Dec. 8. YonhapThe Army will retire a scout dog, famed for his role in locating a missing teenager in 2019, from surveillance duty due to old age on Thursday, officials said, concluding his storied decadelong career.The armed service is set to hold a retirement ceremony for Dalgwan at the 32nd Infantry Division's maneuver battalion unit in Sejong, about 120 km south of Seoul, in the afternoon.The 10-year-old German Shepherd rose to national prominence in 2019 when he played a pivotal role in the search mission for then-14-year-old Cho Eunnuri who had been missing for 10 days on a mountain in Cheongju, 137 kilometers south of Seoul.Dalgwan was the first to discover Cho alive, along with his handler Sgt. Maj. Park Sang-jin, in the mission that involved over 5,700 personnel from the police, the fire department and the military.Cho and her family will be present at the ceremony at the unit, where he will remain a military dog with a lighter support mission."Without the Army service mem

Dec 8, 2022

Army to retire scout dog Dalgwan famed for finding missing girl in 2019

INTERVIEW 'We should learn from nature that leaves no waste': IPCC chair

IPCC Chair Lee Hoe-sung speaks during the opening ceremony of COP27 in Egypt's Sharm El-Sheikh, Nov. 6. Courtesy of IPCCIPCC chair underscores circular economy as realistic solution to climate changeBy Ko Dong-hwanEnergy transition is now a byword for a solution to the much-touted goal of “carbon neutralization by 2050” that many countries have committed to so far. It calls for discontinuing the use of fossil fuel to reduce carbon emissions that are incrementally raising global greenhouse gas emissions and replacing them with clean, pollutant-free renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydro and geothermal power. But Lee Hoe-sung, chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), says many people are mesmerized by the rosy prospects of carbon neutralization and fail to spot potential loopholes.“To harness those natural resources, we need machines,” Lee told The Korea Times in an interview at his office in Seoul. "To produce those equipment, we need earth minerals that should be mined like nickel, lithium, copper, silver and bronze. From mining

Dec 7, 2022By Ko Dong-hwan

[INTERVIEW] 'We should learn from nature that leaves no waste': IPCC chair

Seoul mayor charts path for 30% drop in greenhouse gas emissions by 2026

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the Seoul International Forum on Climate and Environment 2022 at Seoul City Hall, Thursday. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentBy Ko Dong-hwanSeoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said the Korean capital is on its way to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2026 via curbing single-use wastes and improving the city's circular economy, which involves incentives for reusing products.In his opening speech at the Seoul International Forum on Climate and Environment 2022, Thursday, which was streamed live online for participants from across the world, the mayor said the city's greenhouse reduction plan is part of efforts to realize the country's goal of carbon neutralization by 2050 as the city is home to nearly one-fifth of the country's population of over 51 million. “With the 'untact' (contactless) lifestyle taking root since the COVID-19 pandemic, single-use plastic wastes in the city have increased exponentially,” Oh said. “While reducing them, recycling those wastes and expanding the circular e

Dec 2, 2022By Ko Dong-hwan

Seoul mayor charts path for 30% drop in greenhouse gas emissions by 2026

Cold wave alerts to be issued for most of Korea on Wednesday

People wearing thick clothing walk in Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul on the morning of Nov. 27. Korea Times photo by Hong In-kiA cold wave advisory will be issued in Seoul and almost all other parts of the nation Wednesday as a cold snap is forecast to grip the nation following an unusually warm November, the weather agency said.The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said the cold wave advisory will take effect in Seoul and many other major cities and regions, excluding the southern resort island of Jeju.The advisory is issued when the morning low dives 10 degrees or more over a day to below 3 C.The morning low is forecast to fall to minus 7 C in Seoul on Wednesday, compared with Tuesday's 10 C, according to the KMA.Some southern parts of the country and the southern resort island of Jeju will witness some rain or snow, the KMA said. (Yonhap)

Nov 29, 2022

Cold wave alerts to be issued for most of Korea on Wednesday

Winter cold to bite starting Wednesday

People watch snow cannons covering ski slopes with artificial snow at a ski resort in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, Sunday. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoAfter a milder-than-normal November in Korea, a strong cold front is arriving this Wednesday. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration Monday, temperatures are forecast to drop below freezing in most parts of the country after rainfall on Monday and Tuesday.Temperatures in Seoul are expected to plummet to as low as minus 8 degrees Celsius before falling slightly further the next day. Morning temperatures across the country, including southern regions, are forecast to be close to freezing for the coming week.In areas such as Paju in northern Gyeonggi Province, temperatures are expected to reach as low as minus 13 degrees Celsius early Thursday morning.The weather agency said it may issue cold wave warnings in many regions for Wednesday as its morning lows are expected to fall more than 15 degrees compared with Tuesday.The first snow will likely fall in southern parts of the west coast and on Jeju Island off the south coast, it add

Nov 28, 2022By Jung Min-ho

How bears, old waterwheel helped Hadong County mountain villages go carbon-free

An Asian black bear at Bear Village in Uisin Village of Hadong County, South Gyeongsang Province, crawls on a wooden deck, Nov. 23. The female bear, along with her mother, draw visitors from outside the county to this facility built to highlight the importance of ecological preservation. Korea Times photo by Ko Dong-hwan Mount Jiri protected by ecological cause, renewable energies and central gov't fundsBy Ko Dong-hwanHADONG, South Gyeongsang Province ― As the guide at Bear Village makes beckoning sounds into her microphone, two large Asian black bears emerge sluggishly from their abode inside a concrete cubical structure. One female bear, aged 21 (147 years old in human age, according to Choi Da-hee, the guide), approaches the foot of the eight-meter-high wooden observatory deck in the middle of the compound and stands on her hind legs to figure out what is up there ― the guide, this reporter and a tray full of freshly cut pears. Another female bear, aged 16 (112 i

Nov 28, 2022By Ko Dong-hwan

Environment & Animals