Pune Even as the India meteorological department (IMD) has predicted warmer winter this year as a result of the El Nino impact, the country just went through one of the hottest Septembers in the last 100 years.
Data shared by IMD shows that September 2018 was the fifth warmest September in the last 117 years, with an average rise of 0.52 degree Celsius in the maximum temprature reading which averaged out at 31.95 deg C for the month.
India’s hottest September was recorded in 2015 when the average temperature went up by 0.99 degree Celsius, according to IMD officials.
Besides 2015, record September temperatures were in 2017, 2009 and 1987.
Sivananda Pai, head, Climate prediction centre at IMD Pune said, “Rise in average temperature in September 2018 made the month the fifth warmest September ever, since 1901. This was because of global warming as well as a clear sky."
“The rise in temperature in September had nothing to do with El Nino, the periodic weather phenomenon associated with the warming of surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean thought to be responsible for drought in India and other parts of South Asia,” Pai added.
The senior scientist further elaborated that just as clear skies were responsible for warmers temperature it was also responsible for cooling temperatures at night.
{{/usCountry}}The senior scientist further elaborated that just as clear skies were responsible for warmers temperature it was also responsible for cooling temperatures at night.
{{/usCountry}}According to AK Srivastava, head, climate monitoring and analysis group at IMD, the process of formation of El Nino has been underway in the past few months, because of which rainfall was low during the June-to-September monsoon period.