Hongkongers woke up to a chilly Monday morning when the mercury plummeted to single digits across the territory. This is due to an “an intense winter monsoon”, which is bringing cold and very dry weather to the SAR. The city’s observatory headquarters in Tsim Sha Tsui logged a minimum temperature of 10.6 degrees Celsius, and the mercury fell below 10 degrees on higher ground, with Tai Mo Shan — the city’s foremost peak — recording a low of 1 degree. Areas like Ngong Ping and Victoria Peak came in at 4.5 and 7 degrees respectively.
Record lows for this winter
The Hong Kong Observatory said that the minimum about 10.6 degrees recorded at its headquarters were the lowest of this winter so far. The local weather forecaster issued a cold weather alert on Monday morning and warned that “the temperature felt by the body will be lower than the actual air temperature” as it is windy in parts of the territory.
The highs for Monday will not exceed 16 degrees. Humidity will also be down, with lows of 25% expected, making rain unlikely. Temperatures will also drop at night as the city heads into what is predicted to be another cold day on Tuesday.
Cold Chinese New Year
Lunar New Year’s Eve will also be cold, with temperatures in the 12-18 degree range in urban areas and lower in parts of the New Territories and on high ground. It will also be dry, with humidity levels ranging between 25%-55%. The first day of Chinese New Year, which falls on Wednesday, will be mainly fine and dry, and “rather cool in the morning”.
The weather will get warmer in the latter part of the week and it will be less dry than previous days. Temperatures will range from 15-20 degrees over the upcoming long holiday weekend, and humidity levels will peak at 90% on Saturday and Sunday. The second and third day of Chinese New Year will be mainly cloudy with light rain patches.
For more weather updates, visit the Hong Kong Observatory website.
Image credit: Hong Kong Street View via Flickr