The Hong Kong Observatory issued its first cold weather warning of the year at 6am on Monday morning, and forecast that minimum temperatures for the first half of the week would range between 7 degrees and 11 degrees Celsius. It is expected to be coldest on Tuesday, when temperatures will range between 7 degrees and 10 degrees, with the mercury set to fall lower in the New Territories, possibly causing ice to form on high ground.
The observatory attributes the cold weather to “an intense winter monsoon and upper-air disturbance” that will affect Guangdong over the next couple of days. The city’s meteorological body also expects it to be “very cold and windy with a few rain patches”.
However, temperatures will gradually increase in the second half of the week and hover between 13 degrees and 19 degrees until Sunday. While it will be warmer next week, there will also be rain and unsettled weather because of an “upper-air disturbance” over southern China.
This week’s temperatures are predicted to be the lowest of this winter so far, as the mercury dropped to 8.1 degrees last month. However, the lowest temperature ever recorded in Hong Kong was on January 18, 1893, when temperatures plummeted to 0 degrees, and were even lower at The Peak.
For the latest Hong Kong weather updates, visit the Hong Kong Observatory website.
Header image credits: Jon Siegel via Flickr