QUEZON CITY, Philippines — The official rainy season brought by the southwest monsoon, locally known as habagat, has officially drawn to a close, state weather bureau announced on Monday, October 5.
With the termination of the habagat, the country now enters a climatic transition period ahead of the expected arrival of the cool northeast monsoon, or amihan, which the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) projects will begin during the latter half of October.
Weather forecasters noted that key atmospheric conditions have signaled the seasonal shift.
“A gradual shift in the prevailing weather pattern has been observed over the past several days, such as the strengthening high pressure system over East Asia, the southward-migrating Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), and the notable weakening of winds and a decrease in rainfall associated with the southwest monsoon,” PAGASA said in its advisory.
Over the coming days, the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) will remain the dominant weather driver, bringing scattered rain showers and localized thunderstorms across Palawan, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
Meanwhile, initial northeasterly wind surges—bringing cooler, drier air—are expected to begin affecting extreme Northern Luzon.