Throughout the summer of 2018, South Korea suffered through a record heat wave like many other regions around the world. For example, on August 1st, Hongcheon recorded the hottest temperature in all of South Korea in 111 years since the Meteorological Administration started recording temperatures in 1907. Yet many other cities came close and recorded all time high temperatures for each municipality. Seoul, the capital of South Korea, was one of the hottest with 39.6?C, while cities like Chungju, Suwon, and Daejeon all had maximum temperatures of 40.0?C, 39.3?C, and 38.9?C, respectively. Additionally, this summer has led to an all time record in the number of days with maximum temperatures of 33?C or above, with a national average of 31.4.

According to Korea Times, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced that this heat wave has led to an all-time high of at least 45 casualties from and 4,368 people treated for heat-related illnesses, such as heatstroke, heat cramps, and heat exhaustion. These mostly occurred in places with limited or no access to air conditioning for people like the underprivileged and the elderlies. 

This phenomenon is in line with many of the other regions around the world having unusually hot summers with intense heat waves, and it is seen by many scientists to be one of the many consequences of climate change around the world. Korea, in particular, met this heat wave after an unusually short monsoon season — the second shortest in history — caused by an abnormally strong development of high atmospheric pressure. These are some examples of irregular weather patterns that demonstrate that the climate is changing. 

Furthermore, the heat wave led to rapid increases in electricity consumption because workplaces and homes used much air conditioning to address the extreme heat. This is especially ironic since an increased consumption of electricity leads to more greenhouse gases emitted, accelerating the greenhouse effect and contributing to climate change, the very problem that resulted in an increase in electricity consumption. This phenomenon shows that the problem is a vicious circle that requires solutions to break the cycle. 

So what can we do to prevent these weather patterns from happening in the future? One solution is to use fewer fossil fuels and replace non-renewable energy sources with renewable ones like wind energy, hydropower, solar energy, geothermal energy, and more. These methods do not emit greenhouse gases in the process of producing the energy and therefore can cut back on the amount of greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere from the combustion of fossil fuels. Another solution is to prevent deforestation since trees absorb carbon dioxide, one of the main greenhouse gases, from the atmosphere and reduce the greenhouse effect.