The main purpose of this ongoing blog will be to track planetary extreme, or record temperatures related to climate change. Any reports I see of ETs will be listed below the main topic of the day. I’ll refer to extreme or record temperatures as ETs (not extraterrestrials).😜
Main Topic: Kokushobi- A New Japanese Term for ‘Cruelly Hot’ Extreme Heat
Dear Diary. Yesterday I read some more news, which is a sign of our climate crisis warning times. In response to the hottest summer in recorded history for Japan, the people of that country have voted for a new term, Kokushobi, which means cruelly hot for temperatures at or above 40°C/104°F.
Here are more details from the BBC:
Japan reveals new name for 40C-and-hotter days after blistering summer
Japan reveals new name for 40C-and-hotter days after blistering summer
4/12/2026
Mallory Moenchand
BBC Weather
David Mareuil/Anadolu via Getty Images
Japan has unveiled a new name for days that reach 40C (104F) or above, after the country experienced its hottest summer on record last year.
The term – kokushobi – has been translated as “cruelly hot”, “brutally hot” or “severely hot” day by Japanese and international media.
The name emerged as the most popular in a national online survey, with “super extremely hot day” in second place.
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The description, introduced by Japan’s Meteorological Agency (JMA) on Friday, uses koku – meaning harsh or cruel – to describe the heat, the Japan Times newspaper reported.
The survey was conducted in February and March and received roughly 478,000 responses, in which people picked their preferred term among 13 options to describe the hottest day.
Japan already has terms for days over 25C, 30C and 35C.
The new word for even hotter weather comes after record-shattering heat hit Japan last year.
Summer 2025 was the hottest since records began in 1898 – with average temperatures nationwide 2.36C above average.
Temperatures reached 40C-plus on nine days between June and August, with a new national peak of 41.8C in the city of Isesaki.
The cumulative number of extremely hot days also surpassed the previous record set in 2024.
For example, Tokyo recorded 25 days over 35C, compared with an average of just 4.5 days. Kyoto logged 52 days above the same temperature, compared with an average of 18.5 days.
This summer, JMA forecasts a high probability of above-normal temperatures in Japan from June to August.
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Here are some “ETs” recorded from around the U.S. the last couple of days, their consequences, and some extreme temperature outlooks, as well as any extreme precipitation reports:
Here is More Climate News from Tuesday:
(As usual, this will be a fluid post in which more information gets added during the day as it crosses my radar, crediting all who have put it on-line. Items will be archived on this site for posterity. In most instances click on the pictures of each tweet to see each article. The most noteworthy items will be listed first.)