The Central Weather Bureau said yesterday that it may issue a sea alert for tropical storm Fitow tonight, adding that it has the potential to turn into a typhoon.
The name “Fitow” was contributed by the Federated States of Micronesia, and means a beautiful fragrant flower in the Yapese language.
The bureau previously forecast that the storm, which formed on Wednesday, would not affect Taiwan.
However, it said that the storm could move closer to the nation if the high-pressure system in the Pacific Ocean becomes stronger.
As of 5pm yesterday, the center of the storm was 980km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving north at 10kph. The radius of the storm had reached 180km.
The bureau said that the maximum wind speed measured near the center of the storm had topped 108kph and it would soon qualify as a typhoon if the wind speed continued to rise.
Forecaster Lin Ding-yi (林定宜) said the bureau could issue a sea alert for the storm either tonight or tomorrow morning.
“It is possible that the storm could turn into a typhoon,” he said.
Based on the bureau’s projected path of movement for Fitow yesterday, the storm would not make landfall and would move through the sea near the nation’s northeastern and northern coasts.
Starting today, chances of showers will be high in the nation’s northern and northeastern regions due to the joint influence of the storm’s passage and the northeast monsoon.
Rainy weather is expected in these two regions over the weekend, the bureau said.
The weather will be relatively stable in the nation’s southeast and other parts of the west coast, Lin said.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost