April 6, 2023
HONG KONG – Hong Kong was much warmer than usual in March with the northeast monsoon over southern China generally weaker than normal, according to the Hong Kong Observatory.
The HKO said in a statement that the monthly mean maximum temperature of 24.2 degrees Celsius was 2.3 degrees above normal and the fifth highest on record for the month.
It said the monthly mean temperature of 21.3 C and monthly mean minimum temperature of 19.4 C were both 1.8 degrees above normal and one of the fourth and one of the fifth highest on record for March.
The total rainfall in the month was 70.3 millimeters, about 7 percent below the normal figure of 75.3 millimeters, the Observatory said
The total rainfall in the month was 70.3 millimeters, about 7 percent below the normal figure of 75.3 millimeters, the HKO said.
It added that the accumulated rainfall recorded in the first three months of the year was 90.1 millimeters, about 39 percent below the normal figure of 147.4 millimeters for the same period.
Under the influence of a dry northeast monsoon and the subsequent easterly airstream, the weather of Hong Kong was generally fine and dry on the first 11 days of the month, the Observatory said.
A weak cold front moved across the coast of Guangdong on the evening of March 12 and brought slightly cooler and cloudier weather to Hong Kong in the next two days.
With the moderation of the northeast monsoon, apart from a few light rain patches on the morning of March 17, it was warm with sunny periods during the day in Hong Kong on March 15 to 18. The visibility was also relatively low at first on March 18.
With sunny periods during the day, it was hot on March 24. The temperature at the Observatory rose to a maximum of 29.0 degrees in that afternoon, the highest of the month, the HKO said.
Meanwhile, a trough of low pressure over inland Guangdong developed into a cold front and moved across the coast of Guangdong on the morning of March 25. A band of intense thundery showers associated with the cold front affected Hong Kong on that day.
More than 30 millimeters of rainfall were generally recorded over the territory and rainfall even exceeded 50 millimeters over parts of the urban areas and the New Territories, the HKO said.
Hail was also reported in the vicinity of Sai Wan Ho during the passage of the thunderstorms in that afternoon, it added.
Under the influence of a strong northeast monsoon and the subsequent upper-air disturbances, it was cooler and mainly cloudy with a few showers till the end of the month.
There was no tropical cyclone over the South China Sea and the western North Pacific in March 2023, the HKO said.