SOCIETY
Starry Taitung tops awards
Taitung County’s star-watching campaign clinched the top honor at this year’s Spark Design Awards, marking the third consecutive year the county has gained international acclaim for the event, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. “Starry Taitung,” which has been organized by the county government since 2018, received the Platinum Award. It was also the sole Platinum winner in the “Experience” category, recognized for enhancing user experience across all stages, from development and design to marketing and service, the awards said. Held annually between May and September, the free, expert-guided event takes participants to the best stargazing spots in various townships, such as in Guanshan (關山), Dawu (大武), Donghe (東河), Beinan (卑南), Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島), with some sessions also featuring vibrant starlit bazaars and live music performances, the county government said. “Starry Taitung” has also garnered other international accolades, including the London Design Award in 2022 and the Asia Design Prize last year, the government added.
Photo courtesy of the Taitung County Government
WEATHER
Rime ice seen at Yushan
Rime ice was observed on the northern peak of Yushan (Jade Mountain, 玉山) yesterday morning. The Central Weather Administration’s (CWA) weather monitoring station on the mountain said that there was no snowfall, but minus-1.6°C was logged at about 5am. Meanwhile, the lowest temperature recorded in a low-lying area yesterday morning was in New Taipei City’s Shiding District, at 9.6°C at 5:44am, it said. The CWA said that the strength of the cold air mass is forecast to intensify, bringing temperatures down to 10°C to 11°C in several northern cities and counties, and could even affect areas as far south as Tainan at night. It has also issued cold surge advisories for most of Taiwan, including Keelung, Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan, warning that temperatures could drop to about 10°C or less this morning. The strong cold air mass coupled with the effect of radioactive cooling are forecast to prevail until early this morning, before weakening and bringing temperatures slightly back up later in the day, the CWA said.
DIPLOMACY
MOFA extends condolences
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday extended its condolences to India over the passing of former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, who died on Thursday at the age of 92. Singh played a pivotal role in deepening bilateral ties between Taiwan and India during his 10-year tenure, the ministry said. He strengthened cooperation between the two nations in areas such as finance, trade, investments and liberal arts education, it said, adding that Singh had made the opening of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in Chennai possible. Singh’s efforts and achievements in cementing bilateral relations, and promoting regional prosperity and peace will be remembered, the ministry said. The ministry said it had instructed Taiwan’s mission to India to convey their condolences and sentiment to the Indian government. It also said it would continue to build upon the foundations cemented by Singh and work with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to continue cultivating a beneficial relationship between Taiwan and India.
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
BITTERLY COLD: The inauguration ceremony for US president-elect Donald Trump has been moved indoors due to cold weather, with the new venue lacking capacity A delegation of cross-party lawmakers from Taiwan, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), for the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, would not be able to attend the ceremony, as it is being moved indoors due to forecasts of intense cold weather in Washington tomorrow. The inauguration ceremony for Trump and US vice president-elect JD Vance is to be held inside the Capitol Rotunda, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. A person familiar with the issue yesterday said although the outdoor inauguration ceremony has been relocated, Taiwan’s legislative delegation has decided to head off to Washington as scheduled. The delegation
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
Another wave of cold air would affect Taiwan starting from Friday and could evolve into a continental cold mass, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Temperatures could drop below 10°C across Taiwan on Monday and Tuesday next week, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. Seasonal northeasterly winds could bring rain, he said. Meanwhile, due to the continental cold mass and radiative cooling, it would be cold in northern and northeastern Taiwan today and tomorrow, according to the CWA. From last night to this morning, temperatures could drop below 10°C in northern Taiwan, it said. A thin coat of snow
RSS