Delhiites braved the coldest January 12 in the last five years with the mercury slipping to a low of 3.4 degrees Celsius on Thursday. The overall temperature settled four degrees below normal and though the day was sunny and bright, chilly cold winds left many freezing under layers of woollens.
The mercury dropped steeply during the evening hours because of the north-westerly winds. The MeT Department said there will be no relief from the cold wave in the next 24 hours as the mercury is likely to hover around 3 degrees Celsius.
The mercury plummeting to 2 degrees Celsius at several place in the city. The Safdarjung observatory, recorded a low of 3.4 degrees Celsius while the Lodhi Road observatory recorded a minimum of 2 degrees Celsius. Areas under Palam, Ayanagar and Ridge logged a minimum of 4.4, 4.9 and 5.5 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Cold and dry winds
“Today's minimum temperature of 3.4 degrees is the lowest in the month of January in the last three years and it is also lowest of the season so far,” said Ravinder Bhishen, the director of the Regional Weather Forecasting Centre.
“The ongoing winter conditions are due to the continuous flow of cold and dry north-westerly winds. These icy cold winds are blowing directly from the snow-clad Himalayas of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh,” said a MeT Department official.
These winds are dry in nature and have reduced the humidity levels significantly, which is further aiding the dip in temperatures, the official said.
3 degrees on Friday
According to the official, it is the coldest January 12th since 2012. “If we look at the record season-wise, it’s the second coldest day as on January 6 in 2013, the temperature had plummeted to 2 degrees Celsius.”
Friday’s forecast for minimum temperature is 3 degrees Celsius. On Sunday the minimum is likely to go up to 8 degrees Celsius. The humidity on Thursday oscillated between 100 and 54 per cent with moderate fog.
The MeT department has said that western disturbance is expected on January 15th and 16th and the temperatures in the city will rise after that. .
