Japan’s Mount Fuji got its famous snowcap this week. Finally. 

Normally, the peak gets powdered more than a month earlier. In fact, Mount Fuji has not had such a delayed snowfall in 130 years. (That’s when people started keeping records of the weather.)

People glimpsed the snow on Wednesday. They saw it from the southwestern side of the mountain. But the local weather office is in charge of declaring the news. Staff members couldn’t see the mountaintop from their office. It was too cloudy. So they didn’t make the official announcement until Thursday morning.

Mount Fuji stands nearly 12,300 feet high. Sprinkles of snow usually fall on it starting October 2. Last year, snow dusted the mountain on October 5. 

The previous record for latest snow was October 26. That was in 2016. This year broke that record by 11 days.

The snowless Mount Fuji captured attention on social media. People posted photos of the bare mountain. Some were surprised. Some were concerned. All wondered, Hey, where’s the snow?

Weather experts have an answer. October had surprisingly summery weather this year. What’s the average October temperature? At the summit, it’s usually around 28.4 degrees Fahrenheit. At that temperature, water freezes. It can snow. This year, it was 34.9 degrees. That’s a few degrees above freezing.

Mount Fuji is a symbol of Japan. People love to make artworks showing its snowy top. It attracts hikers who climb to the summit to see the sunrise. Some say too many people visit. Hikers often leave trash behind.

Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. — Isaiah 1:18