TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Temperatures across Taiwan are forecast to dip substantially on Friday (Dec. 16) when the first major cold wave of this winter is expected to arrive from the north, causing the mercury in flat areas to drop to as low as 6 degrees Celsius and likely bringing snow over the weekend in mountainous areas.
Meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) in his weather column today (Dec. 15) said the latest European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) model released on Wednesday (Dec. 14) shows that a cold wave will move south into Taiwan on Friday evening. Wu predicted the Taipei Weather Station could see temperatures as low as 8 degrees, while temperatures in flat areas could drop below 6 degrees, while also advising the public to stay warm and agriculture, fishery, and aquaculture operators to take precautions.
Wu also forecast two phases when snow will be likely. On Friday evening, Wu said there is a higher probability of snow in high mountain areas over 3,500 meters, while snow will also be likely on Sunday (Dec. 18) in mountainous areas that are lower in altitude, such as the Tatun Volcano Group, Qixing Mountain, Lala Mountain, and Taiping Mountain.
He said that as of 5:03 a.m., the lowest temperature in flat areas was 11.7 degrees in New Taipei City's Shimen District, 12.7 degrees in Taoyuan City's Yangmei District, and 12.8 degrees in Keelung's Qidu District. Skies are cloudy from central to northern areas, the eastern half of the country will likely see intermittent rain, localized rain is likely in Hsinchu County and areas north, and while scattered showers are possible in central Taiwan.
Temperatures in northern Taiwan will see a range of 13 degrees to 20 degrees, central Taiwan will range between 15 and 24 degrees, southern Taiwan will range between 15 and 27 degrees, and eastern Taiwan will range between 15 and 25 degrees.
Wu said according to the ECMWF model, the weather front will pass over Taiwan on Friday and the range of rainfall will expand. There will be significant rainfall in central Taiwan and areas north as well as eastern Taiwan, while there will be brief rains in the south.
On Saturday (Dec. 17), there will be some rain in the north and east, while precipitation over central and southern parts of the country will diminish. From Sunday to Monday (Dec. 18-19), the cold wave will be at its most intense in the early morning, but the skies will be clear and conditions stable.
Wu said that the cold wave will gradually weaken by Monday and skies will be sunny and conditions stable as temperatures gradually rise. On Tuesday (Dec. 20), the weather will be "mild, warm, and comfortable" during the day and cold during the morning and evening.
On Wednesday (Dec. 21), another wave of dry, cold air is expected to move southward into Taiwan. In the first half of the day, there is a chance of localized, short-term rainfall in northern Taiwan, but the weather will soon clear up across the country in the afternoon.
