Cherry blossom petals are falling, and a belated cold snap is arriving in Korea.
Cold air will move in from the northwest starting Sunday afternoon, pushing morning temperatures below zero in inland areas on Monday.
Nationwide low temperatures on Monday morning are forecast at -1 to 7 degrees Celsius, about 5 to 10 degrees lower than Sunday morning. A sharp temperature drop is expected, and cold wave advisories have been issued for Taebaek in Gangwon Province and mountainous areas in the southern region. Between October and April, cold wave advisories are issued when "the morning low is expected to drop more than 10 degrees from the previous day to 3 degrees or below, and fall more than 3 degrees below the seasonal average."
Monday's daytime highs will reach only 12 to 15 degrees Celsius. Forecast lows and highs for major cities are: Seoul and Daejeon at 3 and 13 degrees, Incheon at 4 and 12 degrees, Gwangju at 4 and 14 degrees, Daegu at 3 and 14 degrees, Ulsan at 5 and 14 degrees, and Busan at 7 and 15 degrees. Morning temperatures in Taebaek, Cheorwon, Inje, Yanggu and Daegwallyeong in Gangwon Province are expected to drop to as low as -1 degree.
Strong winds are also expected. Gusts of around 70 km/h will blow through mountainous areas of Gangwon and northeastern Gyeongbuk through the morning, while coastal regions and Jeju Island will see winds of around 55 km/h. Wind chill temperatures may feel significantly lower than actual readings.
Yellow dust is the wildcard for air quality. Dust originating from the Gobi Desert and the Inner Mongolian Plateau will flow in on northwesterly currents, temporarily raising fine particulate matter (PM10) concentrations mainly in central regions. The Seoul metropolitan area may see "poor" air quality levels in the morning, while the Gangwon region could experience "poor" levels from dawn through the morning before gradually recovering to "moderate" levels.
The late-season cold snap is expected to last through Tuesday morning. Temperatures will remain below seasonal averages until Tuesday morning before returning to normal levels.