Taiwan

Taiwan (traditional Chinese: 臺灣 or 台灣; simplified Chinese: 台湾; Hanyu Pinyin: Táiwān; Tongyong Pinyin: Táiwan; Wade-Giles: T'ai²-wan¹; Taiwanese: Tâi-oân/Tāi-oân (historically 大灣/台員/大員/台圓/大圓/台窩灣)) is an island in East Asia. "Taiwan" is also commonly used to refer to the territories governed by the Republic of China (ROC) and to ROC itself, which governs the island of Taiwan, Orchid Island and Green Island in the Pacific off the Taiwan coast, the Pescadores in the Taiwan Strait, and Kinmen and the Matsu Islands off the coast of mainland Fujian. The island groups of Taiwan and Penghu (except the municipalities of Taipei and Kaohsiung) are officially administered as Taiwan Province of the ROC. However, in practice, almost all government power is exercised at the national and local (city/county) levels.

Taiwan is also currently claimed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) although the PRC has never controlled Taiwan or any of the current ROC territory commonly referred to as "Taiwan". The PRC justifies its claim by arguing that the PRC succeeded the ROC in 1949, and pointing out that the ROC had ruled Taiwan for four years from 1945 to 1949.

The main island of Taiwan, also known as Formosa (from Portuguese (Ilha) Formosa, meaning "beautiful (island)"), is located in East Asia off the coast of mainland China, southwest of the main islands of Japan but directly west of the end of Japan's Ryukyu Islands, and north-northwest of the Philippines. It is bound to the east by the Pacific Ocean, to the south by the South China Sea and the Luzon Strait, to the west by the Taiwan Strait and to the north by the East China Sea. The island is 394 kilometers (245 miles) long and 144 kilometers (89 miles) wide and consists of steep mountains covered by tropical and subtropical vegetation.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan

Mainland China - background

There has been a struggle between the two Chinese entities since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, when the Communist Party of China defeated the Republic of China, which was led by the Kuomintang (KMT, Chinese Nationalist Party). This led to the establishment of the PRC, which has since been based on "Mainland China". It excludes the area controlled by the retreating Kuomintang, as well as the then colonies of Hong Kong and Macau. Since the return of Hong Kong and Macau to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and 1999 respectively, "Mainland China" generally continues to exclude these territories, because of the "One country, two systems" policy adopted by the PRC central government towards the SARs. The term is also used in economic indicators, such as the IMD Competitiveness Report.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainland_China

Mainland China

Mainland China, Continental China, or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term usually synonymous with the area that is culturally and economically associated with the territory of the People's Republic of China (PRC), usually excluding the Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macau. The term also never includes Taiwan, which is claimed by the PRC, but is currently under the jurisdiction of the Republic of China (ROC). The term in the Chinese language may or may not include Hainan Island, which is geographically separate. In Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao, the term is a politically neutral method of referring to the Mainland region.
In English speech and writing, the distinction is not always made, and a reference to "China" is often an implicit reference to mainland China, at the exclusion of Taiwan. This usage of the term "China", however, is often more flexible with the inclusion of Hong Kong and Macao. (See article on China for details).

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mainland_China

High pressure area

A high pressure area (also called a high or high-pressure) is a region where the atmospheric pressure is greater than surrounding areas. In the northern hemisphere high pressure areas move clockwise, whereas they move counter-clockwise in the southern hemisphere. In some countries, these regions may be referred to as anticyclones. Highs are frequently associated with light winds and subsidence. Subsidence will generally evaporate most cloud droplets after less than 500 meters by adiabatic heating. Thus, high pressure typically brings clear skies. During the day, since no clouds are present to reflect sunlight or reflected inki, there is more incoming shortwave solar radiation and temperatures are higher in the summer and lower in the winter. At night, the absence of clouds means that outgoing longwave radiation (i.e. heat energy from the surface) is not absorbed, giving cooler diurnal low temperatures in all seasons.

Climatologically, high pressure forms at the Horse Latitudes as a result of air which has been uplifted at the equator. As the hot air rises it cools, losing moisture; it is then transported poleward where it descends, creating the high pressure area. This is also known as Hadley Cell circulation. Many of the world's deserts are associated with these climatological high pressure systems. Surface high pressure systems tend to be larger in area and have weaker surface winds than low pressure systems, because of the addition of surface friction to the pressure gradient and coriolis effect that drives the circulation.

Some high pressure areas persist long enough that they acquire names. The land-based Siberian High often remains quasi-stationary for more than a month during the most frigid time of the year, making it unique in that regard. In the United States the Azores High, also known as the Bermuda High, brings fair weather over much of the North Atlantic Ocean. Along its southerly periphery, the clockwise circulation often impels easterly waves across the ocean towards North America during the hurricane season.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_(atmospheric)