This summer has been the hottest ever recorded in Taiwan, with several monitoring stations having reported record temperatures, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said yesterday.
This summer arrived earlier and has been warmer than past summers, with the average temperature from June to Wednesday reaching a record 29.54°C, Weather Forecast Center Director Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) said.
Previous records were 29.41°C from July to September last year, 29.38°C from July to September 2014, 29.16°C from June to August 2016 and 28.99°C from June to August 2017, he said.
Photo: CNA
Several weather monitoring stations have recorded the highest temperatures ever, including 40.2°C in Taitung County’s Dawu Township (大武), 39.7°C in Taipei and 23.8°C at Yushan National Park, where the bureau’s station is at an altitude of 3,858m.
In Taipei, there were 72 days in June and last month when temperatures exceeded 35°C, 55 days when temperatures exceeded 36°C, 30 days when temperatures exceeded 37°C, 13 days when temperatures exceeded 38°C, and two days when temperatures exceeded 39°C, bureau data showed.
Average rainfall this summer dropped 50 percent compared with past summers, although this month has had greater rainfall, Lu said.
The first eight months of this year has had the least rainfall since 1993, he added, urging people to conserve water.
An unusually strong subtropical high-pressure system caused the plum rain season to end earlier than usual, the bureau said.
This month, six typhoons have formed in the Pacific Ocean — more than the monthly average of 5.6 — but their effect on Taiwan was limited, the bureau said, adding that they were weaker because they formed near land.
Lu forecast that rainfall would increase from next month to October, saying that warmer sea temperatures might produce more typhoons than normal this fall and winter.
In related news, the bureau said that Tropical Storm Maysak, which formed in waters east of the Philippines yesterday, is not likely to have a major effect on Taiwan, although it is likely to bring rain to northern Taiwan on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning.
Additional reporting by CNA
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