Despite summer warning, Delhi woke up to coldest April morning in six years on Saturday
The minimum temperature dropped to 16.5°C — at least three degrees below than the normal temperature for this time of the year.
Delhiites woke up to the coldest April morning since 2011 on Saturday, as the minimum temperature dropped to 16.5°C —at least three degrees below than the normal temperature for this time of the year.
The last time it had dropped to this low was on April 5, 2011, when the temperature was 15.4°C. The lowest temperature Delhi has ever witnessed in the fourth month of the year was 10.7°C in 1965.
“It is the lingering effect of the western disturbance that triggered rain on Tuesday and Wednesday. Cool north-westerly winds are sweeping across the city, which is allowing the night temperature to drop. The clear sky is adding to the effect,” said a scientist of the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre in Delhi.
Tuesday was the wettest April day in Delhi in almost a decade. Along with Delhi, other states including Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh also received rain because of the western disturbance. The moisture in the air is cooling down the air.
But met officials have warned that the relief could be short-lived as the effect of the disturbance is gradually fading.
“We expect the day temperature to shoot up drastically within a week once the moisture in the air gone,” said the scientist.
If predictions of the local met department holds true, then Delhi will again have to bear with some harsh summer days within a week, with the mercury level shooting up to 39°C by April 14.
The nights would, however, remain somewhat cooler as the clear sky will allow the heat to radiate. The minimum temperature would remain less than 20°C at least for another week.
In 2016 and 2015, the mercury level had touched 42°C and 45°C in April. This year, it has already touched 39°C in the last day of March, making it one of the hottest March days since 2010.
The Indian Meteorological Department has already predicted that the summer of 2017 will be harsher and the next couple of months will see above normal temperatures.