December warmer than usual

January 3, 2019

The weather in Hong Kong was much warmer than usual last month due to a weaker than normal northeast monsoon affecting southern China.

 

The Hong Kong Observatory said the monthly mean temperature in December was 19.2 degrees and the mean minimum temperature was 17.6 degrees, both higher than normal.

 

The daily mean temperature on December 4 was 24.8 degrees, the highest on record for December, while that on December 22 reached 22.2 degrees, making it the warmest Winter Solstice on record.

 

Under the influence of an intense winter monsoon, local weather became windy with temperatures falling progressively towards the end of the month.

 

With chilly northerlies prevailing and cloudy skies, the temperature on December 30 dropped to 10.3 degrees - the lowest temperature of the month.

 

The month was drier than usual with 11.9 mm of rainfall, about 44% of the normal figure.

 

The annual total rainfall of 2162.9 mm in 2018 was about 10% below the annual normal figure.

 

There were two tropical cyclones over the South China Sea and the western North Pacific in December.

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