Mercury to drop 10 degrees in northern Taiwan, tropical storm could form Wednesday

台灣北部氣溫將下降10度，週三可能形成熱帶風暴

Tropical Storm Surigae could form as soon as Wednesday but is not expected to alleviate drought


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A weather front is expected to send temperatures dropping by 10 degrees Celsius on Wednesday (April 14), while a tropical storm could take shape near Guam that same day.

Meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) predicts that as a weather front arrives and the northeast monsoon strengthens, the chances of rainfall in the northern and northeastern parts of the country will increase this evening (April 13). The Central Weather Bureau predicts that temperatures in northern Taiwan will drop by 10 degrees, while a tropical depression (TD02) near Guam could form into Tropical Storm Surigae as soon as Wednesday.

Wu said that on Wednesday and Thursday (April 15), waves of moisture will bring cloudy skies, increasing the probability of rain in the north and east. After the moisture begins to dissipate Friday and Saturday (April 16 and 17), cloud cover will weaken, decreasing the odds of precipitation in the north.

He predicted that temperatures in northern Taiwan will drop slightly and bring cooler weather Wednesday through Saturday. However, due to partly sunny skies, temperatures in the central and southern regions will remain consistently warm throughout the week.

Wu said that by Sunday (April 18), moisture in the north will gradually dissipate and skies will be sunny. Meanwhile, there will still be a chance of brief afternoon showers in mountainous areas of central and southern Taiwan.

The CWB predicts that due to the arrival of a weather front and strengthening of the northeast monsoon, northern Taiwan will become significantly cooler. Highs tomorrow will be down 10 degrees from today, dropping to as low as 17 degrees in some areas.

Wu said that tropical cloud clusters are continuing to form to the southwest of Guam. He said that weather models from the Global Forecast System and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts predict the tropical storm will form within the next two days.

The CWB said conditions off the coast of Guam are suitable for the tropical depression to transform into a tropical storm on Wednesday and continue to strengthen through the weekend. However, because it appears it will turn sharply northeast after reaching the Philippine Sea, the expected impact on Taiwan low.

The meteorologist said that both simulations have the storm shifting away from Taiwan when it reaches waters about 1,000 kilometers southeast of Taiwan. Therefore, he said that regardless of the size and strength of the storm, it will do little to alleviate Taiwan's drought.