Around 5 to 8 tropical cyclones are expected to affect Macao during this year’s typhoon season, which will begin in June and end in October or perhaps even later.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the Metrological and Geophysical Bureau (known by its Portuguese initials SMG) described the number as within the “normal to relatively high” range, and noted that Macao could be hit by typhoons that are of a “severe” or higher level of intensity.
Meanwhile, Macao’s rainy season is forecast to fall between April and September, with the average temperature ranging between “normal to relatively high.” During this six month period, the SMG expects the rainfall level to be “normal,” although it did not rule out the possibility of “extreme heavy rainfall” occurring.
[See more: Soaring temperatures drove extreme weather events in 2024, reports finds]
As for the spring season scheduled from March to May, Macao’s temperature is expected to fall somewhere between “normal” and “relatively high” brackets, with the former ranging between 21.9ºC and 22.6ºC.
Looking back over the past year, the weather bureau pointed out that as a result of global warming, Macao’s temperature in 2024 hit an average of 23.6ºC, a figure that is on par with 2019 as the city’s warmest reading since the start of records in 1952. April was especially noteworthy, as the city witnessed three temperature records being smashed, as well as the occurrence of the territory’s first hailstorm in over a decade.
As well, the forecaster made mention of the rare occurrence of four typhoons in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean last November, which it attributed to global warming, as well as the weather phenomenon known as La Niña. Three of those typhoons – Yinxing, Toraji and Man-yi – had a direct impact on the SAR, marking the first time that city had been affected by three tropical cyclones in November.
