A heat warning for the greater Taipei area has taken effect, with daytime temperatures likely to top 36°C today due to a strong Pacific high pressure system, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.
With less moisture in the air after days of rain, cloudy to sunny skies were expected today.
Photo: Taipei Times
The CWA issued an "orange" heat advisory — indicating daily highs of 36°C for three consecutive days — for Taipei and New Taipei City.
The heat warning is to remain in effect into late this afternoon, the CWA said.
Elsewhere, temperature highs are expected to hit 33°C in central and southern Taiwan and 30°C to 31°C in Hualien and Taitung counties in the east, the CWA said.
Despite stable weather conditions around Taiwan, the CWA said sporadic showers were possible in the coastal areas of central and southern Taiwan this morning, while afternoon thundershowers were likely in the north.
Citing the latest European weather model, independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong (吳德榮) said the Pacific high pressure system is expected to hold sway over Taiwan's weather until Saturday, boosting daytime temperatures to as high as 38°C.
Wu said a tropical disturbance is expected to cross Luzon in the Philippines and move toward the South China Sea next week, which could increase the chances of rain for Taiwan.
Meanwhile, the air quality across most of Taiwan was fair to good today, the Ministry of Environment said.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) put Taiwan in danger, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said yesterday, hours after the de facto US embassy said that Beijing had misinterpreted World War II-era documents to isolate Taiwan. The AIT’s comments harmed the Republic of China’s (ROC) national interests and contradicted a part of the “six assurances” stipulating that the US would not change its official position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, Hsiao said. The “six assurances,” which were given by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, say that Washington would not set a date for ending arm sales to Taiwan, consult
A Taiwanese academic yesterday said that Chinese Ambassador to Denmark Wang Xuefeng (王雪峰) disrespected Denmark and Japan when he earlier this year allegedly asked Japan’s embassy to make Taiwan’s representatives leave an event in Copenhagen. The Danish-language Berlingske on Sunday reported the incident in an article with the headline “The emperor’s birthday ended in drama in Copenhagen: More conflict may be on the way between Denmark and China.” It said that on Feb. 26, the Japanese embassy in Denmark held an event for Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s birthday, with about 200 guests in attendance, including representatives from Taiwan. After addressing the Japanese hosts, Wang