Temp hits new season low in Mumbai, dips to 14.1 degrees

Minimum temperature in Mumbai dropped to their lowest this season, on Tuesday morning.

Minimum temperature in Mumbai dropped to their lowest this season, on Tuesday morning.

Smog obscures the view of the sea. It’s been a cool, cloudy week in the city. (Indranil Mukherjee / AFP Photo)

The Santacruz weather station, representative of Mumbai and the suburbs, recorded 14.1 degrees Celsius, 2 degrees below normal; Colaba recorded 18 degrees Celsius, just over 1 degree Celsius below normal.

Officials from the weather bureau said cold winds from the north on began to bring down temperatures on Monday evening. “This is a common seasonal phenomenon, where the temperature dips around this time of the year,” said KS Hosalikar, deputy director general (western region), India Meteorological Department. “Cool northerly to northeasterly winds will keep temperatures below normal levels. We expect a drop in maximum temperatures as well over the coming days.”

Earthquake in Thane district

An earthquake registering 3.2 on the Richter scale occurred at 2.21 am on Tuesday morning in Thane district.

“Since it was a mild earthquake, it could hardly be felt,” said KS Hosalikar, deputy director general (western region), India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Mumbai recorded its previous lowest temperature of the season, 15.2 degrees Celsius, on December 21. The lowest temperature overall in 2017 was 12.5 degrees Celsius, recorded on January 11.

Meanwhile, the city’s air quality improved on Tuesday. An air quality index of 189 (moderate) was recorded on Tuesday morning, an improvement from the poor levels of 216 on Monday. “The increase in wind speed has helped disperse pollutants,” said Hosalikar.

The lowest minimum temperatures in the state were recorded in central regions, at Gondia and Osmanabad — 8 to 9 degrees Celsius. The weather bureau has predicted clear skies for Wednesday.