20151109 Standard_Start of Winter(立冬)Heat is on as winter arrives

Monday, November 09, 2015

It was the first day of winter or Lidong yesterday, according to the Chinese calendar. But Hong Kong scorched at 28.7 degrees Celsius at noon, making it the fifth hottest start to winter since 1947.
The 28.7-degree figure was recorded at the Tsim Sha Tsui Observatory, and reflected the heat of urban areas. It also happened to be the sixth-hottest Lidong since 1885.
Hong Kong Observatory scientific officer Christy Leung Yan-yu said the long-term picture is more complex.
"If we look at the long-term trends, there are no significant warming trends for this particular day," she said.
The highest temperature recorded yesterday was in Sheung Shui, which peaked at an impressive 31.9 degrees.
Leung said it isn't unusual for inland areas like Sheung Shui, Tuen Mun or Yuen Long to have significantly higher daily maximum temperatures than urban areas, given their greater distance from the sea.
Temperatures today will be 25 to 29 degrees, with inland areas seeing 30 to 31 degrees.
The four times when the observatory recorded Lidong temperatures higher than yesterday were in 1947, 1980, 1996, and 2008, with the last holding the record for the hottest at 29.4 degrees.

Temperatures will drop later in the week, falling to 21 degrees on Saturday. TIMOTHY LEE