New Delhi, 10 Jan (UNI) Delhi experienced another biting cold winter morning as the minimum temperature continued its slide, settling at 4.2 degrees Celsius (°C) on Friday, the lowest of the season.
The temperature was also the lowest the capital had witnessed in January in the last two years, since it recorded 3.5°C on January 16, 2024, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Over the past two days, the minimum for the city has dipped consistently, with the city’s base station recording 4.8 degrees Celsius (°C) a day before, 5.8 degrees Celsius (°C) on Wednesday and 8.6°C on the day preceding that.
IMD has issued a yellow alert for Sunday and Monday.“Moderate fog is expected in different parts of the city and dense fog in some isolated places in the morning hours of Sunday. However, throughout the rest of the day, mainly clear skies are expected to persist,” said an IMD official.
IMD has forecast mainly clear skies until Tuesday, with the possibility of cold wave conditions at isolated places during the next two days, with minimum temperatures likely to stand between 3°C and 5°C.
A cold wave is declared when the minimum temperature falls below 10°C and is at least 4.5°C below normal, with the requirement that at least two weather stations record these conditions for two consecutive days.
The frigid conditions over the national capital continued the pollution woes for the city, as the low temperature and humidity led to a layer of haze that trapped pollutants closer to the surface despite persistent wind speeds of 15 kmph over Delhi in the past 24 hours. At 4 p.m. on Saturday, the average air quality index (AQI) stood at 346, similar to the previous day’s levels of 345 in the “very poor” range, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.
Meanwhile, the maximum temperature on the day was 20.2°C, up from the previous day’s 19.7°C.
