Taipei: A continental cold mass brought low temperatures and up to 9 centimeters of snow to Taiwan's highest mountains early Saturday morning, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The CWA's weather monitoring station on 3,952-meter Yushan (Jade Mountain), Taiwan's highest mountain, recorded temperatures as low as minus 5.3 degrees Celsius, leading to snowy conditions.

According to Focus Taiwan, the snow started falling early Saturday morning and stopped at around 6 a.m., leaving an accumulation of 1.5 centimeters of snow on the mountain, the CWA said. Elsewhere, 9 cm of snow accumulated on 3,422-meter Hehuanshan overnight, according to the Forest and Nature Conservation Agency.

The High Bureau's Central Region Branch Office stated that snow chains were required on vehicles driving through the Yuanfeng-Dayuling section of Provincial Highway No. 14A, which cuts through the Hehuanshan area. In low-lying areas, the lowest temperatures recorded around Taiwan early Saturday morning were 12.1 degrees in Guanxi Township in Hsinchu County in northern Taiwan and 12.2 degrees in Shimen District in New Taipei, also in the north, according to CWA data.

The CWA mentioned that the current cold mass is expected to weaken later Saturday with temperature highs forecast to hit 18-20 degrees in northern Taiwan and Yilan and Hualien counties in the east, and 22-26 degrees elsewhere. Temperatures are expected to fall back to 13-17 degrees around Taiwan at night, the CWA said, warning of a wide day-night temperature gap.

Despite the weakening cold air mass, the CWA stated that if there is sufficient moisture and temperatures remain low enough, mountains at elevations of 3,000 meters or higher in the northern half of Taiwan could still see snowfall. Citing a model from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, independent meteorologist Wu Der-rong said the worst of the current cold air mass was over, with milder seasonal northeasterly winds expected to move in Tuesday and Wednesday. Wu mentioned that another cold front is expected to arrive in Taiwan on Thursday, the first day of 2026, and could strengthen into another continental cold air mass.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment reported that the air quality across most of Taiwan was fair to good on Saturday.