Cloudy sky might spoil view of moon at mid-autumn fest

Rainy and cloudy weather threaten to spoil the view of the Moon for many Chinese celebrating the Moon Festival Wednesday night. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said cloudy weather and isolated rainshowers loom in parts of the country. PAGASA forecaster Benjie dela Paz said heavy rains in the afternoon and evening loom over Metro Manila and Rizal province throughout this week. "We can expect relatively good weather in the morning but expect rains in the afternoon and evening. Our initial outlook shows this will be the case until at least Saturday," Dela Paz said in an interview on dzRH radio Tuesday evening. He also maintained the rains that fell on Metro Manila and parts of Rizal province Tuesday were not due to a cyclone. Dela Paz said a low-pressure area (LPA) off Mindanao dissipated Tuesday afternoon. "We no longer have a low-pressure area in Philippine territory. It is the inter-tropical convergence zone that causes the rains," he said. In its 5 a.m. bulletin, PAGASA said "Northern and Central Luzon will experience mostly cloudy skies with scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms." — LBG, GMANews.TV