At 9°Celsius , Delhi records its coldest November day in 3 years

Although a cold wave was not declared on Sunday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said it is likely to be announced on Monday if two or more weather stations meet the criteria for a second consecutive day.

Delhi woke up to its coldest November morning in more than three years on Sunday, as the minimum temperature dipped to 9 degrees Celsius (°C) – a sharp 4.5°C departure from what is considered normal for this time of year. Forecasts indicated that Monday could be even colder, with the minimum possibly settling close to 8°C.

Delhi woke up to its coldest November morning in more than three years on Sunday (Arvind Yadav/HT PHOTO)

Although a cold wave was not declared on Sunday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said it is likely to be announced on Monday if two or more weather stations meet the criteria for a second consecutive day.

A cold wave is classified when the minimum temperature falls below 10°C, with a departure of 4.5°C or more below normal for two days in a row. On Sunday, at least two stations met this threshold. “At least two stations should satisfy the criteria for two consecutive days. As this is the first day, a cold wave will not be declared today,” an IMD official said.

Safdarjung, Delhi’s base station, recorded a minimum of 9°C with a departure of 4.5°C below normal. The Ridge station saw a minimum of 9.7°C – 5.7°C below normal. Lodhi Road also recorded a sub-10°C minimum of 9.2°C, but the departure was only 2.8°C below normal, keeping it outside the cold wave category.

“This was only the first day in which the criteria was met. A cold wave will be declared on Monday if two or more stations again record similar readings,” the IMD official added.

Experts attributed the sudden dip to a combination of clear skies and steady northwesterly winds. Delhi’s minimum had already been on a downward trend: 9.7°C on Saturday and 10.2°C on Friday. “In the absence of clouds, any heat accumulated during the day escapes into the atmosphere at night. We’re also seeing consistent northwesterly winds blowing across the plains,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice president at Skymet.

IMD said the minimum temperature will remain below normal at least until Friday, with departures likely hovering between two and five degrees Celsius. While shallow fog is expected across most parts of the city on Monday morning, moderate fog may form in isolated pockets.

“Shallow to moderate fog will continue in the region till at least Friday,” an IMD official said.

To be sure, a sub-10°C minimum is not unusual for November. IMD records show Delhi recorded 9.5°C on November 29 last year and 9.2°C on November 23, 2023. In 2022, the lowest November minimum was 7.3°C. The lowest minimum in the past decade was 6.3°C on November 23, 2020. The all-time lowest minimum for November – 3.9°C – was recorded on November 28, 1938.

Delhi’s maximum on Sunday stood at 27.5°C, a degree below normal. Maximum temperatures are also expected to dip slightly, with readings likely to settle between 24°C and 26°C on Monday and between 23°C and 25°C on Tuesday.

A day earlier, Delhi’s minimum slipped into single digits for the first time this season, registering 9.7°C on Saturday – 3.8°C below normal. According to IMD data, this was the earliest since November 2020 that the minimum temperature dropped below 10°C.