The Central Weather Bureau (CWB) is planning to install four radar systems in Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties to expand the area where it gathers precipitation-related data.
The four new radar systems in the outlying islands — two in Kinmen and two in Matsu — would enable the bureau to monitor weather systems coming from China and better determine types of precipitation through three-dimensional observations, it said, adding that the radar systems can also help Taiwan better prepare for typhoons and flash floods.
The bureau currently operates seven weather radar stations, which are used to monitor atmospheric changes in the northern, central, southern and eastern areas of Taiwan proper. The majority of them have been updated to the dual polarimetric Doppler radar, which enables the bureau to monitor wind speeds, raindrops and ice crystals 400km away, the agency said.
Photo: Wu Po-hsuan, Taipei Times
Each county is to have two types of radars installed: A large weather radar would be used to monitor typhoons, weather fronts, strong convection or other extreme weather systems, while another one would monitor clouds and fog, Chin Hsin-long (秦新龍), a CWB section chief, said on Saturday.
“Because Kinmen and Matsu do not have any radar stations, weather forecasts on the two outlying islands must be made using radar systems on the Taiwan proper,” he said. “However, magnetic waves transmitted from Taiwan only allow us to detect changes in high-altitude clouds, and we have no way of monitoring atmospheric changes in lower altitudes.”
It often leads to inaccurate weather forecasts, Chin said.
The constructions are estimated to cost NT$800 million (US$25.48 million) and scheduled to begin in 2025 and end before 2030, the bureau said.
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
HOLIDAY EXERCISE: National forest recreation areas from north to south offer travelers a wide choice of sights to connect with nature and enjoy its benefits Hiking is a good way to improve one’s health, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said, as it released a list of national forest recreation areas that travelers can visit during the Lunar New Year holiday. Taking a green shower of phytoncides in the woods could boost one’s immunity system and metabolism, agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) cited a Japanese study as saying. For people visiting northern Taiwan, Lin recommended the Dongyanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Taoyuan’s Fusing District (復興). Once an important plantation in the north, Dongyanshan (東眼山) has a number of historic monuments, he said. The area is broadly covered by
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
RSS