Sanfu over but heatwave to continue

Blisteringly hot weather will continue next month, though this year’s dog days have technically ended.

Sanfu, the hottest days of summer in the Chinese calendar, ended yesterday.

Over the 40-day period, the city had 14 “high temperature days” of 35 degrees Celsius or more.

The hottest day was July 25 with a high of 37.7 degrees, the only day this year that the city recorded a temperature over 37 degrees, according to the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau.

Shanghai is now in the chushu period, which started on August 23. On the calendar, chushu indicates the end of summer when temperatures start to fall, but Shanghai does not usually enter autumn until qiufen, which begins on September 23 this year.

Under the influence of sea air from the east, this week will be cloudy, punctuated by scattered showers. The mercury will rise to 33 degrees, forecasters said.

A subtropical high will gain strength and move west in early next month, bringing more high temperature days.