The Han River in Seoul is covered in thick ice on Saturday in this photo provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration. (Yonhap)
The Han River in Seoul is covered in thick ice on Saturday in this photo provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration. (Yonhap)

The Han River froze for the first time this winter on Saturday as a prolonged cold wave pushed temperatures in Seoul sharply lower. The freeze arrives 37 days earlier than last year and about week earlier than average.

The Korea Meteorological Administration said the river was officially recorded as frozen when a designated section upstream between the second and fourth piers of Hangang Bridge was fully covered with ice, obscuring flowing water.

The Han River typically freezes after at least five consecutive days of sub-minus-10-degree Celsius overnight lows and daytime highs remaining below zero.

This year's freeze contrasts with last winter, when unusually mild weather delayed the first freezing until Feb. 9. On average, the Han River freezes in mid-January.

Meteorologists say the river now tends to freeze later and for shorter periods than in the past, citing river engineering in the 1980s that increased water flow and rising temperatures linked to climate change.

A tourist shields a child from the cold wind in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Saturday, as freezing temperatures gripped the capital. (Yonhap)
A tourist shields a child from the cold wind in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Saturday, as freezing temperatures gripped the capital. (Yonhap)

herim@heraldcorp.com