Heat Wave Hits Taiwan

Unseasonable heat plagued portions of Taiwan on Tuesday, leading to the first 100-degree Fahrenheit reading in two years.

Taipei, the capital of the island nation, recorded a high temperature of 100 degrees (37.8 C) late Tuesday afternoon, local time. It marked the first triple-digit reading for the city since July 2010 and only the second since 2007.

The unusual high fell just short of the all-time record of 102 F (38.8 C) set on Aug. 9, 2003, according to the Central Weather Bureau.

Even though average highs in Taipei are near 90 F (32.2 C), its high marine influence will often prevent it from becoming much hotter.

The heat is a result of a closed upper-air high pressure system that is bringing weak steering flow to the country, preventing marine air from penetrating farther inland.

High pressure will persist over the island through the week, maintaining hot and dry conditions for a country which receives most of its rainfall from tropical systems. Current outlooks from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center show no significant tropical rains on the horizon.

The heat will finally break over the weekend as the high pressure system departs and a more typical pattern arrives, knocking temperatures back towards seasonal averages.

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