A tropical depression in waters east of the Philippines is forecast to develop into a storm on Monday at the earliest, but it is not likely to have a direct impact on Taiwan, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said Sunday.
As of 2 p.m., the depression was moving in a west-southwest direction at a speed of 7 kilometers per hour, packing sustained winds of 54 km per hour and gusts of up to 82.8 kph, the weather bureau said.
Chances are low for sea or land warnings for the tropical storm, to be named Ma-on, the CWB said, adding that the storm may only cause rain when it reaches its closest point to Taiwan between late Tuesday and Wednesday.
The outer rim of Ma-on could bring sporadic showers or thunderstorms to southern, eastern, and southeastern Taiwan during the period, while other areas may see cloudy to sunny skies with occasional afternoon thundershowers, forecasters said.
Ma-on, the 9th tropical storm in the region this year, is expected to continue approaching Hong Kong and southern China after passing waters south of Taiwan, according to the CWB.
If there remains no storm warning by the end of August, it would be the first time for Taiwan to experience no storms between January and August for three years in a row, the bureau said.
Meanwhile, due to the influence of a tropical high-pressure system, the temperature on Sunday soared to 41.6 degrees Celsius in Guangfu Village, Hualien County, the highest recorded across Taiwan this year.
It broke the record of 41.4 degrees, seen in the county’s Zhuoxi Village on July 22, bureau data showed.
With an approaching tropical continental air mass that has pushed temperatures to record highs in central China, the scorching weather in Taiwan is expected to continue through Tuesday, with the eastern and northern areas likely to experience daytime highs of 38 degrees or higher, said Wu Der-rong (???), an adjunct associate professor of atmospheric sciences at National Central University.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel