 "Heatwaves")
Just days after Delhi experienced record-breaking heat at 52.9 degrees Celsius, the temperature in Nagpur has now exceeded 50 degrees Celsius. On Thursday, it reached a whopping 56 degrees Celsius, the Times of India reported.
Two of the four automatic weather stations (AWS) set up by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) in Nagpur recorded unusually high temperatures, exceeding 50 degrees Celsius, surpassing even the Mungeshwar AWS in North-West Delhi, which recorded high temperatures on Wednesday.
The Nagpur AWS, located in the 24-hectare open agriculture field at PDKV in Ramdaspeth, off North Ambazari Road, recorded an astounding 56 degrees Celsius. The AWS at the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Sonegaon also recorded 54 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, the AWS in the fields of the Central Institute of Cotton Research (CICR) at Khapri, off Wardha Road, showed 44 degrees Celsius, and the Ramtek AWS recorded 44 degrees Celsius as well.
Heatwave in Delhi breaks record
The Delhi station created ripples across the country after posting a historic 52.9 degrees Celsius, though as per the AWS/ARG (automatic rain gauge) Networks of the IMD, the Mungeshwar data is under scrutiny.
The surge in temperature was recorded a day after Delhi nearly reached 50 degrees Celsius at three of its weather stations in the outer areas. Mungeshpur, Narela, and Najafgarh weather offices have been reporting extreme temperatures recently. Earlier, Rajasthan's Churu was reported to be the warmest district of the season at 50.5 degrees Celsius.
Experts have attributed heatwaves from Rajasthan as a key contributing factor for the extreme temperature in the capital. Mahesh Palawat, vice-president of Meteorology and Climate Change at Skymet Weather, said, "In open areas with vacant land, there is increased radiation. Direct sunlight and lack of shade make these regions exceptionally hot."
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A heatwave is declared over a region "when the actual maximum temperature remains 45 degrees Celsius or more irrespective of the normal maximum temperature," the Centre states.
According to the IMD, a heatwave is declared "if the maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius or more for plains, 37 degrees Celsius or more for coastal stations, and at least 30 degrees Celsius or more for hilly regions" for two or more days.
Timely monsoon to bring relief
On Thursday, the southwest monsoon arrived over the Kerala coast and parts of the Northeast earlier than anticipated, signalling the commencement of its four-month journey across India. The usual onset date for the monsoon in Kerala is June 1, and for Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, and Assam, it is June 5.
Meteorologists explained that Cyclone Remal, which struck West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday, redirected the monsoonal flow towards the Bay of Bengal, potentially contributing to the early onset over the Northeast.
The weather office had predicted the monsoon's onset over Kerala by May 31, a forecast that aligned with the recent heavy rains in the region, resulting in a surplus of rainfall for May, according to weather office data.
