3 degrees of separation: Day-night gap narrows

Consistent rain and thunderstorm throughout Friday pushed the maximum temperature below 15 degrees Celsius for the first time this winter.

Consistent rain and thunderstorm throughout Friday pushed the maximum temperature below 15 degrees Celsius for the first time this winter. This meant that city residents experienced a bitter cold that is usually only felt at night so early in winter. In fact, the difference between minimum and maximum temperature dropped to merely 3.6°C – leaving people shivering even during the warmest part of the day.

People gather around a bonfire on a cold morning in New Delhi. (Arvind Yadav/ HT Photo)

Safdarjung, representative of Delhi’s weather, recorded a maximum of 14.6°C – 5.8 notches below the normal and d own from Thursday’s maximum of 24.1°C. However, the minimum in Delhi rose by nearly three notches and was recorded at 11°C -- up from 8.2°C on Thursday and four degrees above the normal. The difference between minimum and maximum temperature on Thursday was 15.9°C.

When the day stays cold

IMD classifies it as a cold day when the maximum is 4.5°C or more below the normal and the minimum is also below 10°C. Delhi’s maximum was the lowest since 2019 when 14.6°C was recorded on December 23 and 14.3°C on December 24.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued yellow alert from Saturday to Monday, warning the residents of rain and dense fog.

An IMD official explained the change in temperatures. “The minimum went up due to cloudy skies. When there is a cloud cover, the heat cannot escape from the Earth’s surface at night. Similarly, during the day, sunlight cannot penetrate due to the cloud cover and the maximum goes down,” the official said.

IMD had issued an orange alert for Friday, along with an advisory asking people to avoid electric open wires and power poles.

IMD has also issued a yellow alert from Saturday to Monday. According to forecasts by the weather department, intermittent showers with one or two spells of light rain during early morning to forenoon is expected on Saturday, followed by dense fog on Sunday and Monday.

Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet, said, “Once the effects of this western disturbance fades, strong winds from the northwest are likely to start blowing through Delhi on December 30-31. Following that, we might see sharp dip in the minimum temperature.”

IMD has forecast the maximum to be around 15°C on Saturday. The minimum is expected to be around 12°C. According to IMD’s forecast, January 2025 is set to begin with a maximum and minimum of 20°C and 7°C, respectively.

Meanwhile, the maximum temperature in Gurugram on Friday was 15°C and the minimum was recorded at 13.8°C, making the gap at 1.2°C, even lower than the Capital. Further, upto 20.5mm of average rainfall was witnessed in Gurugram.