SINGAPORE - Last year was the warmest year in Singapore's history,
according to the inaugural Annual Climate Assessment Report
released by the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) on Tuesday
(March 22).
The annual mean temperature of 28.3 deg C experienced in
2015 - exceeding the climatological average by
0.8 dec C - was matched only in 1997 and 1998, MSS said.
Singapore saw warmer than normal monthly temperatures for all
months last year, bar February. New monthly records were also set,
with the warmest months being July, October, November and
December.
MSS added that the warming trend in Singapore has been observed
over a number of decades - the average rise of 0.25 deg C per
decade from 1948 to 2015 was more than twice the global warming
rate (0.12 deg C) over the same
period.
"This trend is observed to be accompanied by an increase in the
number of warm days (days with temperature above 34.1 deg C) and
warm nights in Singapore, occurring against a background of
year-to-year climate variability, mostly associated with El Nino
and La Nina events," the service said.
Last year also turned out to be the second driest year on record,
with only 1,266mm of rainfall recorded. The driest year was in
1997.
The drier weather in the second half of 2015, according to MSS, was
exacerbated by the prevailing El Nino, which contributed to one of
the longest and most severe transboundary haze events experienced
in Singapore.
On the upside, the prevailing El Nino, which developed in mid-2015
and peaked in December, is gradually weakening and has been
forecast to weaken further as it transitions to neutral conditions
in the middle of this year.
Warmer conditions, however, can still be expected over the next one
or two months. Mean monthly temperatures are likely to be
significantly higher than their respective long-term averages.
MSS warned the public to brace for warm days with daily maximum
temperatures of between 33 and 35 deg C.
In light of the hotter, drier and wetter conditions that could
become more frequent in Singapore, MSS has also launched its free
weather mobile app,[email protected].
It can be downloaded from both the Apple App and Android Play
stores.
[email protected] will provide users
with access to the latest national forecasts, observations as well
as warnings and advisories, MSS said.
The app is also equipped with features such as push notifications,
the ability to detect a user's location and automatically display
the two-hour Nowcast and current weather conditions.
Both the MSS' climate assessment report and [email protected] were released in
conjunction with World Meteorological Day, which falls on March
23.
The report will be an annual publication available on
the MSS
website and serves to provide relevant and useful weather
information, including a perspective of Singapore's climate in
comparison with historical records.
