The maximum temperature may hit the 42-degree mark in Delhi in two to three days but a heatwave is unlikely for another week, India Meteorological Department (IMD) officials said on Wednesday.
A fresh western disturbance is going to affect the northwest region and it may lead to a dust storm and drizzle in Delhi on May 13 which might bring temporary relief, Kuldeep Srivastava, the head of the IMD’s regional forecasting centre, said.
“The maximum temperature will continue to rise over the next few days amid clear skies and it is predicted to hit the 42 degrees Celsius mark by May 12-13. However, a heatwave is unlikely till May 16-17,” he said.
Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 20.9 degrees Celsius on Wednesday and the maximum temperature is likely to settle around 38 degrees Celsius. The city experienced a long spell of cloudy weather and sporadic rainfall from April 21 to May 7, which is rare during this time of the year. May has been historically the hottest month in Delhi, with a mean maximum temperature of 39.5 degrees Celsius.
Officials attribute this to the back-to-back western disturbances, weather systems that originate in the Mediterranean region and bring unseasonal rainfall to northwest India.
“Northwest India has seen three to four WDs since April 21-22. Delhi has not recorded a single heatwave day during this period. This is unusual. However, we cannot link it to climate change in the absence of data. There is no definite trend,” Srivastava said.
On Thursday last week, Delhi saw an unusual episode of dense fog. The minimum temperature dropped to 15.8 degrees Celsius, making it the third coldest morning in May since the IMD started keeping weather records in 1901. According to IMD data, the Safdarjung Observatory has recorded 50.8 mm of rainfall in May so far. On an average, the capital logs 19.7 mm of rainfall in the whole month.
The city recorded more than 20 mm of rainfall in April, the highest in the month since 2017, due to back-to-back western disturbances. The prolonged wet spell resulted in below-normal maximum temperatures during this period.
The IMD has also predicted below-normal maximum temperatures and fewer heat wave days in northwest India this month.
In 2022, Delhi had recorded its second hottest April since 1951 with a monthly average maximum temperature of 40.2 degrees Celsius.
The city saw nine heatwave days in April last year, including four in the first 10 days, which was the maximum in the month since 2010.
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