Cherry Blossoms Are Blooming Early From Tokyo to Washington
A tourist draw in Japan and the US, cherry blossom season is starting earlier as climate change makes winters warmer.
Iconic cherry trees in Japan and the US are blossoming earlier as climate change brings warmer temperatures, upending a fixture of the spring calendar in major cities.
No country is more associated with blossoming cherry trees, or sakura, than Japan, and tourists from overseas often try to time their visits to see the delicate pink petals. The average date at which they start to bloom has moved up 1.2 days per decade since 1953, said Daisuke Sasano, a climate risk management officer at the Japan Meteorological Agency.