Expect a lot of rain in the next two months, the Central Weather Bureau warned yesterday as the nation's annual plum rain season approaches.
The natural weather cycle means the nation can expect heavy rainfall from mid-May through to mid-June, said Daniel Wu (吳德榮), director of the Weather Forecast Center at the bureau.
This period of time is referred to as meiyu jijie (梅雨季節), meaning "plum rain season," as it coincides with the plum season.
Rainy season
The plum rain season is the main annual rainy season in the country, as, on average, 25 percent of annual rainfall in the north comes within these two months, and "in south Taiwan, over 30 percent of [annual] rainfall comes during the plum rain season," Wu said.
"So far, we haven't seen anything that would cause dramatic change to this year's plum rain season, both rainfall and temperature forecasts fall within the average range," he said.
Within the two months, the amount of rainfall throughout the nation is expected to be between 560mm and 570mm, except in Hualien where the amount of rainfall is expected to be approximately 414mm, according to the forecast.
Temperature
Average temperatures in May will be in the low to mid-20s throughout the nation, except in the south where the average is expected to be from 26.9oC to 27.5oC.
In June, the average temperature will rise throughout the country to between 27oC to 28oC on average.
Although the plum rain season is a natural phenomenon, unexpected natural disasters could occur, Wu warned.
"Natural disasters caused by exceptionally heavy rain, thunder storms, strong winds, isolated occurrences of hail and tornadoes are possible," Wu said.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS