Heat wave in northwest, central and south India as Cyclone Amphan exits
India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday said there will be a two-four degrees Celsius rise in maximum temperature over northwest, central and west India in the next to three days.
Most parts of the country will experience the indirect impact of Super Cyclone Amphan, which weakened into a deep depression on Thursday and sent the maximum summer temperatures soaring.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday said there will be a two-four degrees Celsius rise in maximum temperature over northwest, central and west India in the next to three days.
IMD has warned of a heatwave over Rajasthan between Thursday and Monday; western Madhya Pradesh (MP), Vidarbha, and Telangana from Thursday and Sunday; over coastal Andhra Pradesh, north interior Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal from Thursday to Saturday, over east Madhya Pradesh and Rayalseema and over Uttar Pradesh (UP) from Friday to Sunday.
A feeble Western Disturbance is expected to impact Western Himalayas on Friday, which is likely to bring rain and thundershowers to Jammu and Kashmir; Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand and light thundershowers to Haryana, Punjab, and Delhi but maximum temperatures are likely to rise even in the northern plains, IMD scientists said.
In May, the maximum temperature Delhi recorded was on May 10 at 40.9 degrees Celsius, two degrees above normal.
According to Skymet Weather, “heatwave conditions are likely over Delhi and Haryana also after two to three days.”
“There are two important factors — one is there is no clouding. There are clear skies almost all over the country except where the cyclone or depression is. The other reason is there is advection, wind patterns have changed after the cyclone. Hot, dry north-westerly winds are blowing even over peninsular India, which makes conditions favourable for heatwaves. Eastern MP, Rajasthan, UP, parts of peninsular India are all likely to develop heatwave like conditions now. There is no major weather system that can cause clouding. The impact of western disturbances will also gradually reduce now leading to higher temperatures in northwest India including Delhi,” said K Sathi Devi, head, National Weather Forecasting Centre.
The highest temperatures recorded on May 20 were in Barmer in west Rajasthan and Akola in Vidarbha at 44.2 degrees Celsius. There are two criteria for the recording of heatwaves—when the maximum temperature is at least 40 degrees Celsius and departure from normal is 4.5 degrees Celsius to 6.4 degrees Celsius. A heatwave is also declared when the maximum temperature is over 45 degrees Celsius for two stations in a sub-division for two days.
“Because of cyclone Amphan, all the moisture is concentrated around it while dry, north-westerly winds are blowing over the rest of the country which causes temperatures to peak gradually,” said Sunita Devi, who is in-charge of cyclones at IMD.
Not just the rest of May but even June could be very hot in many parts of the country. “If there is no western disturbance, north-west India will be hot even in June. Hot winds from desert regions will heat up the region as wind patterns have changed after Amphan,” said DS Pai, senior scientist at IMD Pune.
Amphan led to an early onset of the southwest monsoon over the Andaman and Nicobar islands last Sunday where the low pressure before the formation of the super cyclone made conditions favourable for monsoon advancement. The northern limit of monsoon (NLM) continues to pass through Car Nicobar. It is likely to make an onset over Kerala on June 5, a delay of four days compared to the normal onset date of June 1. “After a cyclone passes, the atmosphere is disturbed. It takes time to come back to normal. Monsoon advancement can begin normally only when normal atmospheric and wind conditions are restored. The westerly hot winds also impact most parts of the country,” said M Mohapatra, director-general, IMD.
