Mumbai records second hottest February night in a decade
Night temperatures in the city have soared in the city, with Mumbai recording its second-highest February minimum temperature in a decade in the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday.
While the suburbs recorded a night temperature of 22.4 degrees Celsius – almost 5 degrees above normal – south Mumbai recorded 22 degrees Celsius – 2.2 degrees Celsius above normal. The highest February the minimum temperature for the decade was recorded in 2014 at 22.8 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, the city recorded the highest day temperature of this season on Monday, with the mercury soaring to 35 degrees Celsius.
“The rise in temperature is expected to continue, as the wind pattern has changed from cool northerly winds to warm easterly surface winds, effectively ending winter conditions in Mumbai,” said KS Hosalikar, deputy director-general, western region, India Meteorological Department.
Independent weather experts also said that Mumbai was witnessing near-surface winds from the east, which have started increasing the temperature.
“Such winds delay the onset of sea breeze, thereby reducing the natural thermostat effect. It won’t be surprising to see the city reeling under a maximum temperature of 35 degrees Celsius throughout the week. The above-normal temperatures, along with moderate relative humidity, will lead to discomfort. Such conditions are likely going to deteriorate the air quality too,” said Akshay Deoras, meteorologist and PhD researcher, department of meteorology from United Kingdom’s (UK) University of Reading.
The rest of the state too is likely to witness an increase in temperatures this week, Deoras added.
“The maximum temperatures in Vidarbha and Marathwada are expected to range between 30 and 35 degrees Celsius. By 20 February, hotspots such as Chandrapur, Akola, Jalgaon and Solapur will witness above 35 degrees Celsius maximum temperature.”
Meanwhile, the air quality index (AQI) on Tuesday was 161 (moderate) up from Monday’s 157. It is expected to be 160 (moderate) on Wednesday too.