Today's weather for Beijing, China22nd May 2008 15:00

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Weather Overview for Beijing

China’s capital, Beijing, is located in northern China, almost entirely surrounded by the Hebei Province. Already home to almost 17, 500, 000 people Beijing is due to temporarily increase in sinze when it hosts the upcoming 2008 Summer Olympics.

Beijing is home to a humid continental climate which is influenced by the local East Asian monsoons. A humid continental climate is characterised by large variation between seasons and variable weather patterns. These types of climates generally occur over large areas of land masses, such as China and weather conditions tend to increase in extremity the further in land that you move.

Beijing experiences distinct seasons, which should make it easy to decide when you want visit. If you are a fan of the snow and subzero temperatures, head to Beijing in the winter months of December to February. Want to take the gamble of experiencing a sandstorm? Then Spring is your time to go. If you want Beijing’s best weather conditions then head there in Late Summer and Early Autumn, as this sees the capital with its most tolerable weather. Spring is also a beautiful time to visit, however as mentioned earlier, you may get caught up in a dust storm when sand is picked up from the Gobi desert and brought into the capital, sometimes dumping thousands of tonnes of sand into the city.

Summer

Summers in Beijing are hot, humid and wet with the season receiving 40% of the annual precipitation during the months of June and August. July and August see the most rain, and by quite a significant amount. July averages 176mm precipitation and August sees 182mm, where as June sees more than 50% less than this, receiving 71mm precipitation on average throughout the month. The shouldering months of April/May and September/October receive slight rainfall, before falling to 2 to 9mm come November through until March.

This summer rainfall occurs as a result of the East Asian monsoon winds which affect the region. In the peak of summer, the temperatures generally range from 28 up to a blistering 39 degrees. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Beijing was a sweltering 42 degrees Celsius. June to August sees average highs of 30 to 31 degrees and average lows of 18 to 21 degrees. Its best to come equipped with light clothes and plenty of sunscreen, or you could do what the fair skinned locals do and shield from the sun underneath a delicate Chinese parasol.

Winter

Winters in Beijing are blistering. The mercury begins to drop around the end of October, and what eventuates is a harsh, cold and windy few months with very little rain. December and February have an average daily temperature of -2 degrees, and January is the coldest month averaging -4 degrees. The blistering winters are due to the Siberian anticyclones that move southward across the Mongolian plateau.

Throughout winter the January is rarely above freezing, and it generally snows twice during this period. The lowest ever recorded temperature in Beijing was an aching negative 27 degrees.

Spring/Autumn

It is said that the best time to visit Beijing is in the Spring and Autumn months- autumn in particular. By March the barometer has begun to rise slightly and March sees average temperatures of a still chilly 5 degrees, by April however it has warned up quite significantly- averaging 14 degrees, before reaching 20 degrees by May.

By July the South Asian monsoon system has pushed hot and humid air into the north, bringing rain with it also. So if you want to avoid this heat and the showers then stick to the Spring months, keeping in mind the afore mentioned sand and dust storms. In 2002 a dust storm in April alone dumped nearly 50,000 tons of dust onto the city before moving on to southern Asian! The problem that accompanies the sand storms is that Beijing’s infamously high pollution, combined with the high humidity, results in a thick smog blanketing the city.

Weather Modification in Beijing and the Olympics

August will be playing host to the Summer Olympics, which could be interesting due to the amount of rain that generally falls during this period.

The Olympics run from August 8 through until August 24, which is the period that typically records about 11 wet days, high humidity and high temperatures. Chinese meteorologists and the Weather Modification Office have come up with a grand plan to try to avoid rain on the opening ceremony on August 8. While a ‘weather modification office’ seems like something you would see in a futuristic sci-fi movie, but it is in fact existent and running and has been for decades in China. While it is normally in charge of ‘creating’ rainfall to a dusty and polluted region, in the case of the Olympics, the opposite is the mission- the office is trying to find ways to dissolve the clouds so to ensure a dry and sunny opening ceremony.

For many decades the weather modification office has been at work making rain in China’s northern regions. China’s north is affected by the winds off the Gobi desert which has the affect of drying out farms and coating the overpopulated city with frequent sand storms.

By blasting the sky with cigarette sized rockets, scientists scatter crystals into the clouds which then attract water droplets from within the cloud, become heavier and fall as rain drops. Recently this procedure as brought almost 11 millimeters of water to a dehydrated, dusty and polluted Beijing. The main purpose of the office is to bring water to arid areas and to douse the city with rain ridding of pollution, sandstorms, hail and fires. If successful, the rain that is due to fall on August 8 will be blasted out of the sky days earlier so that there is no rain left to fall on the day of the opening.

The Olympic Committee and meteorologists have taken data from on what the weather has been like historically on August 8 over the past 50 years. The Chinese Meteorological Association has predicted a small 10 percent chance for rainfall on the opening day, and throughout the games China's meteorological departments will provide weather forecasts on an hourly basis.

Pollution in Beijing

Beijing has long fought a problem with air pollution, a fight that hasn’t proven overly successful as it was recently listed the air pollution capital of the world. The city plays host to the planets worst levels of nitrogen dioxide which can cause fatal damage to lungs.

The country has spent more than 8 billion pounds on improving the air quality but hasn’t had much success. Millions of cars have been taken off the roads in the past 12 months and many factories have been moved or shut down completely. Less than a year before the Olympics were due to commence, in October 2007, old people and children were advised to stay indoors for the sake of their health as a hazardous haze encircled the city. Citizens were advised to wear face masks to reduce the chances of contract fatal lung diseases.

Over the past decade the pollution in the sky over the country has increased by 50%, a result to China’s incredible growth and the country’s inefficient use of coal as its main source of energy. On an average day in Beijing the air pollution levels are close to five times above the World Health Organization’s standard for safety.

In the build up to the Olympics the government is closing 10% of the city’s gas stations in an attempt to improve the air quality. In addition to this city officials aim to reduce its motor traffic by half during the course of the games, by doubling the subway line network to 125 miles. More than 2,000 old buses and thousands of taxis are being upgraded or replaced with cleaner models.

The air pollution in the city is not only problematic to tourism but is also having a direct effect on the Games themselves. As a result of the pollution levels, Haile Gebrselassie, an Ethiopian Marathon world record holder has decided to withdraw from the Olympic marathon on account of his asthma. He feels that running in such high air pollution may be harmful for his health.

The city is confident that it will reduce its air pollution to an extent by the time of the games, but its fast growing economy adds 1000 new cars to the traffic each day and the countless building sites around the city only add to the already present dust. It is undeniable though that the city is doing everything in its power to ensure the 2008 Games are the absolute best that they can be.

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