The lowest temperature in a low-lying area recorded early yesterday morning was in Miaoli County’s Gongguan Township (公館), at 6.8°C, due to a strong cold air mass and the effect of radiative cooling, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said.
In other areas, Chiayi’s East District (東區) recorded a low of 8.2°C and Yunlin County’s Huwei Township (虎尾) recorded 8.5°C, CWA data showed.
The cold air mass was at its strongest from Saturday night to the early hours of yesterday.
Photo courtesy of the Wuling Farm via CNA
It brought temperatures down to 9°C to 11°C in areas across the nation and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, the CWA said, adding that lows of 7°C to 9°C were recorded in some open areas and low-lying foothills near mountains.
The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said that it recorded 0.1°C in Wuling Farm (武陵農場) in Taichung County at 6:40am yesterday morning, with the vine gardens at the farm coated in ice in the early hours.
Managers at the farm turned on the irrigation system in the vine garden greenhouses to prevent freezing. As a result, icicles formed on the greenhouses and even on hydrangea flowers, the nature conservation agency said.
With the strength of a continental cold air mass gradually easing, daytime temperatures yesterday rose to 21°C to 23°C in central and southern Taiwan, 16°C to 19°C in northern Taiwan, as well as Yilan and Hualien counties in the east.
The mercury would drop sharply after nightfall to 11°C to 16°C in Taiwan proper, 13°C to 17°C in the outlying Penghu Islands, and 10°C to 15°C in Kinmen and 9°C to 11°C in Matsu counties, the CWA said.
The weather would be dry and cold early this morning due to the strong continental cold air mass coupled with the effect of radiative cooling, independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said.
Northeasterly winds would strengthen slightly on New Year’s Eve tomorrow and New Year’s Day, Wu said.
Largely sunny skies would prevail in the western half of Taiwan, and there is a chance of scattered rain in some mountainous areas and the eastern half on New Year’s Eve, he said.
Starting from the daytime on Wednesday, brief showers are expected in the mountainous regions and the eastern half of Taiwan, with occasional rainfall in the low-lying areas of the western half, he said.
Such conditions might not be ideal for viewing the first sunrise of the new year, Wu added.
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