Taipei: Taiwan will experience partly cloudy to sunny weather in the coming week, with favorable conditions for moon-gazing during the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said Sunday. CWA forecaster Cheng Chieh-jen provided details on the weather patterns expected across the country in the days leading up to the festival.
According to Focus Taiwan, Cheng explained that Taiwan will generally see cloudy to sunny conditions with minimal moisture through September 26. Seasonal northerly to northeasterly winds are expected on Monday and Tuesday, potentially bringing isolated brief showers to southern Taiwan and mountainous regions in central Taiwan early in the morning. Additional rain may occur in the mountainous areas of southern Taiwan in the afternoon on both days, with isolated brief showers also anticipated along the northern coast and in northeastern Taiwan on Tuesday.
From Wednesday to Saturday, the winds are expected to shift to an easterly direction, leading to isolated brief showers along the northern coast, in eastern Taiwan, and on the Hengchun Peninsula. Localized brief showers may continue in the mountainous areas of southern Taiwan in the afternoon, while isolated showers are also expected in southern Taiwan and mountainous areas in the northern half of the island.
Cheng noted that weather conditions on Friday and Saturday are expected to remain stable, with only occasional clouds in eastern Taiwan. This forecast suggests that most areas across Taiwan will have excellent opportunities to observe the full moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar.
However, starting September 27, conditions may become unstable as tropical systems develop, potentially bringing localized showers to eastern Taiwan and the Hengchun Peninsula. Cheng highlighted that temperatures over the coming week are expected to remain stable, with highs ranging from 29-32 degrees Celsius in northern and eastern Taiwan and 32-34 degrees in central and southern Taiwan.
Cheng also advised those traveling to Japan to be aware of Typhoon Dujuan, which was positioned over waters south of Japan and had begun shifting its track toward the northeast as of Sunday. The storm is already affecting Japan's Kanto region, with its most significant impact anticipated from Monday afternoon through Tuesday. CWA data indicated that as of 2 p.m. Sunday, the storm was located 580 kilometers south-southeast of Osaka, moving north at a speed of 21-27 kilometers per hour.