This year’s summer will officially arrive in Thailand tomorrow, with the temperature reaching 43 degrees Celsius at its highest, according to an announcement issued yesterday by the Meteorological Department.
The announcement came after the prediction that the monsoon covering the upper part of the country would start changing its direction from northeast to southeast at that time.
This monsoon’s changing direction might make people in the northern and northeastern regions face continuous increases in temperature in the afternoon, touching a daily peak of at least 35C.
However, the announcement said the northern and northeastern re- gions would face cooler weather and some fog in the morning, while the tops of mountains would see even lower temperatures.
This year’s summer is expected to end in mid-May, with an approximate average temperature of 35.5C, higher than last year’s 34C.
The highest temperature will reach 40-43C, with Sukhothai, Tak, Mae Hong Son, and Lampang on the list of provinces with the highest temperatures this year.
According to the department, the highest temperature in Bangkok and its neighbouring provinces is expected to reach 38-39C this year.
In the meantime, despite the announcement of summer’s arrival, the Public Health Ministry warned people living in Bangkok and its neighbouring provinces to keep an eye on the higher levels of hazardous ultra-fine dust particles (PM2.5) caused by the summer weather until next Tuesday.
As of yesterday, PM2.5 measured in the air in Bangkok and the northern region had reached the red level, way above the so-called “safe” level of 50 µg/m3.
Those regions will likely experience higher levels during these seven days, including tomorrow’s first day of summer.
To help people affected by the fine dust, the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (Gistda) and Health Department have developed the Check Fhoon (Dust Checker) mobile application that uses satellite information to help with dust-level tracking.