Japanese weather officials said on Friday that the rainy season appears to be over in the northern Tohoku region, virtually declaring the arrival of full-fledged summer across Japan.
Officials are advising people to stay on the alert against heatstroke.
A high-pressure system continues to cover wide areas from the northeastern region of Tohoku to the southwestern region of Okinawa. Temperatures soared from Friday morning, mainly in western Japan.
As of 11:30 a.m., the temperature had risen to 37.3 degrees Celsius in Akiota Town in Hiroshima Prefecture, while Osaka City and Kumamoto City recorded 36.4 degrees.
Daytime highs are expected to reach 39 degrees in Kyoto City, and 38 degrees in the cities of Osaka and Nagoya.
Scorching weather will continue in many other places.
Heatstroke alerts have been issued for 34 of Japan’s 47 prefectures, from the central region of Kanto-Koshin to Okinawa.