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Unseasonal rain, Westerlies bring back the chill to Lucknow
Heavy rainfall in Lucknow on Friday dropped temperatures to 23.5°C, 10.3°C below normal, with 18 mm of rain recorded, marking a cool March day.
The heavy rainfall which lashed the state capital on Friday, reversed the march of the mercury in thermometers, pegging it at 23.5 degrees Celsius, which was 10.3 degrees below normal, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The minimum temperature was recorded at 20.3 degrees Celsius which was 4.1 degrees above normal.
The city recorded 18 mm rainfall in a single day which was the third highest rainfall recorded in March in the last seven years. According to records of the IMD, the city recorded the highest rainfall in March on March 7, 2020 (22.3 mm) followed by 18.2 mm on March 20, 2023.
The weatherman said that the weather in the city took a complete U-turn making it the coolest day of March so far for this year which was due to a Western Disturbance and cyclonic circulation in the Bay of Bengal.
“The moisture-laden winds from Arabian sea and Bay of Bengal created a system over the northern Indian which led to rainfall and thunderstorms in parts of Uttar Pradesh and snowfall in the lesser Himalayas,” said Mohammad Danish, senior Met officer at Lucknow Meteorological Department.
“Earlier, the lowest maximum temperature for March was recorded in 2024 at 22.4 degrees Celsius. The system will lead to overcast skies with a feeble possibility of very light rain in the city on Saturday. The temperature will gradually record a rise from Sunday onwards,” said Danish.
No effect on AQI
The Air Quality Index (AQI) remained in the poor category in the city even after the day-long rainfall. The AQI was recorded at 103, placing it in the poor category. However, the PM2.5 and PM 10 levels were in permissible limits of National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The permissible limits are 60 micrograms per cubic meter for PM 2.5 and 100 micrograms per cubic meter for PM 10. The particulate matter PM 2.5 and PM 10 were recorded at 34.7 and 72.6 micrograms, respectively.
Najibabad gets most rain
Thunderstorms/hailstorms lashed several parts of the state due to a Western Disturbance on Friday. Najibabad recorded the highest rainfall at 23.2 mm followed by Barabanki at 18.2 mm and Lucknow at 18 mm.
“The maximum temperature of the day fell sharply by 4 to 14 degrees Celsius, causing the temperature to drop significantly by 12.4°C below normal. The weather system will weaken from March 21 and completely end from March 22 which will cause the maximum temperature to likely increase gradually by 5-7°C during next week,” said Atul Kumar Singh, senior Met officer at Meteorological department Lucknow centre.
According to information issued by the Indian Meteorological Department, the rain occurring in the state for the last 2 days is likely to continue until Saturday, and there is a possibility of a significant drop of 7-9 degrees Celsius in the state’s maximum temperature on Saturday, followed by a gradual increase of 5-7 degrees Celsius.
The chances of hailstorm are high in - Basti, Siddharth Nagar, Gonda, Balrampur, Shravasti, Bahraich, Lakhimpur Kheri, Sitapur, Barabanki, Ayodhya and surrounding areas while the possibility of thunderstorms (speed 50-60 km/h) is high in areas including - Prayagraj, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Siddharth Nagar, Sitapur, Unnao, Lucknow, Barabanki and Ayodhya while there are chances of hailstorm in areas including - Hardoi, Kanpur Dehat, Kanpur Nagar, Unnao, Lucknow, Rae Bareli, Agra, Firozabad among others.
