Who turned the AC on? Manila’s temperature may dip further to 18°C, Baguio to 9°C

There are two things Filipinos say throughout the year, sometimes to greet each other: “Ang init!” and “Ang lamig!”

It’s the latter that we’ve been hearing a lot of in the past few days. Call it sweater weather, cuddle weather or bed weather—call it anything you want as Metro Manila and other parts of the Philippines are experiencing chilly weather at night and in the early hours of the morning.

According to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) weather specialist Benison Estareja, Metro Manila temperature may drop further to 18 degrees Celsius.

Why are we experiencing this cold treat? It’s because of the northeast monsoon or amihan, cold air from Siberia, which starts at the end of each year and reaches its peak between January and February of the new year.

The coldest days in Metro Manila were recorded on Feb. 4, 1987 and on Dec. 30, 1988, when the temperature plunged to 15.1°C.

The temperature in Baguio City this month may reach 9°C with the coldest in the new year so far at 10.4°C.

Baguio’s record lows are 6.3°C on Jan. 18, 1961 and 6.7°C on Feb. 18, 1963. Parts of Benguet province like Atok routinely experience single-digit temperature with agricultural produce sometimes being damaged by frost.

Earth Shaker, an organization that raises appreciation of Earth sciences and empowers people to make science-based decisions, posted a meme yesterday listing the temperatures in Atok, Benguet at 11.2°C, Quezon City at 21°C, and Tagaytay at 18.4. The coldest? Your chat with your crush at -273.15°C. 

On social media, Pinoys have been using the hashtag #anglamig and #cuddleweather these past days.

Enjoy the cool amihan weather, folks! Before you know it, we’ll be saying “Ang init!” again as the southwest winds bring in habagat, and hot and humid weather.

And if you think our weather is so cold, imagine being on the other side of the world. Science Focus lists the 10 coldest places on Earth with Dome Fuji in Antarctica reaching -93.2°C in August 2010 as No. 1.

Others on the list are:

Vostok Research Station, Antarctica at -89.2°C in July 1983.

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica at -82°C in June 1982.

Dome Argus, Antarctic Plateau at -82.5°C in July 2005.

Mount McKinley, Alaska at -73.8°C

Verkhoyansk, Russia at -69.8°C in February 1892.

Klinck Research Station, Greenland at -69.4°C in December 1991.

Oymyakon, Russia at -67.8°C in February 1933

North Ice, Greenland at -66.1°C in January 1954.

Snag, Yukon, Canada at -62.7°C in February 1947.

We can’t wrap our heads around these temperatures, and can only imagine the amount of cuddling you need to keep warm!