A brief review of climate in Taiwan

In this chapter, an attempt is made to understand Taiwan's present and past climate. Climatic data from Central Weather Bureau, Taiwan, are used to understand the contemporary climate scenario, and published paleoclimatic records (mostly lacustrine) are reviewed to understand the past climatic changes on this western pacific island. Climatic indices reveal that northern Taiwan receives rains around the year, while southern Taiwan is mostly dry during the winters. Furthermore, southern Taiwan is relatively hotter (1.2°C) than northern Taiwan. A comparison of paleoclimatic records reveals no consistency, which may be attributed to errors in the chronology and or typhoon's role in altering the climatic signal in these archives.