TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecasts that a northeasterly wind system will gain strength on Friday (Oct. 20), bringing cooler and wetter weather to northern Taiwan over the weekend.

The CWA stated that seasonal northeasterly winds will weaken slightly on Wednesday and Thursday (Oct. 18-19), before intensifying again on Friday, per CNA. The weather bureau predicted that rainfall will likely increase in the second half of Friday and into Saturday (Oct. 21).

Saturday is expected to be rainy throughout the day in northern Taiwan, with highs of about 26 degrees Celsius in Taipei.

CWA forecaster Kuan Hsin-ping (官欣平) was cited by the news agency as saying current data shows that from mid-to-late October, Taiwan will mainly experience weather patterns affected by the strengthening and weakening of the northeasterly winds. Although there are scattered tropical disturbances on the sea, they have no direct impact on Taiwan.

Kuan predicted that the weather on Wednesday will be similar to the mild conditions seen on Tuesday (Oct. 17). Under the influence of the northeasterly winds, there will be localized brief rains in eastern Taiwan and the Hengchun Peninsula, while scattered short showers are expected in the mountainous areas of central Taiwan and the southern part of the country.

Kuan said that Wednesday and Thursday will see the least moisture in the coming week. Over these two days, the northeasterly winds will weaken slightly, and skies across the country will be partly cloudy to sunny, with some sporadic showers in the eastern half of the country and mountainous areas.

However, Kuan pointed out that the northeasterly winds will gain strength again on Friday and are currently expected to continue to affect the country through Sunday (Oct. 22). The rainfall is predicted to be more significant from Friday afternoon to Saturday, with localized, brief rains likely in Taoyuan City and areas north, the eastern half of the country, and mountainous areas of northern Taiwan.

The northeasterly winds are predicted to weaken again on Monday (Oct. 23) the areas affected by rain will shrink to localized showers on the north coast of Keelung City and the eastern half of the country.

As for temperatures, Kuan mentioned that the temperatures will be similar to those seen on Tuesday, with the high in northern Taiwan reaching 27 degrees and 31 to 32 degrees in central and southern parts of the nation. The low temperature in northern Taiwan will dip to about 20 to 22 degrees in the evening and early morning, while the lows in central and southern Taiwan will range drop to about 22 to 24 degrees.

In general, temperatures will be cooler in northern regions, while people in central and southern areas should be mindful of diurnal temperature differences.

Kuan mentioned that on Wednesday and Thursday, temperatures in various regions will slightly warm up, with high temperatures in the north reaching around 29 to 30 degrees. On Friday, the northeasterly winds will strengthen, and on Saturday, the northern part of the country will experience cooler conditions throughout the day, with high temperatures in Greater Taipei reaching approximately 25 to 26 degrees.

However, central and southern regions will not be significantly affected.

In addition, Kuan said that although there is currently a tropical disturbance in the South China Sea, it is unlikely to grow into anything more serious and will probably move towards Southeast Asia.