The arrival of a cold front yesterday brought brief snowfall to Yushan (玉山), the nation’s highest peak, painting its summit white on Valentine’s Day.
The unusual weather phenomenon only occurred on Yushan, and lasted for approximately 50 minutes from 6:05am to 6:55am, during which time Yushan’s highest peak accumulated 70mm of snow.
The lowest temperature registered on Yushan early yesterday morning was minus-1.6oC.
Photo courtesy of the Yushan Weather Station
Meanwhile, temperatures in the northeastern, north-central and eastern parts of Taiwan dropped to between 13oC and 14oC, while other areas measured 15oC to 18oC, the bureau said.
The low-lying location where the temperature plummeted the lowest was in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲) at 8am, measuring 11.8oC.
Temperatures are forecast to rise slightly between today and tomorrow, but would remain cool, said Daniel Wu (吳德榮), an adjunct associate professor of atmospheric sciences at National Central University.
The nation would see cloudy weather with chances of temporary showers occurring in areas around Taipei and the eastern half of the island, said Wu, a former director of the bureau’s Weather Forecast Center.
Another cold front is expected to arrive on Friday, which would increase moisture in the air and bring rain, he said.
A cold air mass would land in Taiwan on Saturday, with temperatures dropping to their lowest on Sunday, Wu said.
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