New Delhi: Densely cloudy sky has been predicted in Delhi on Republic Day and moderate fog is expected to bring down the visibility level to 200 metres. The India Meteorological Department said the maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to be around nine degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively. “The city may experience moderate fog on Thursday (January 26) morning. It will be cloudy during the day,” an official said. According to the Met Office, ‘very dense’ fog occurs when visibility is between 0 and 50 metres, 51 and 200 meters ‘dense’, 201 and 500 meters ‘moderate’ and 501 and 1,000 meters ‘shallow’.
Delhi witnessed a cloudy sky on Wednesday (January 25) and the minimum temperature was recorded at 10.6 degrees Celsius, five notches above normal. The maximum temperature was recorded at 19.3 degrees Celsius, two notches below normal. The Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi’s primary weather station, recorded a minimum temperature of 12.3 degrees Celsius on Tuesday (January 24), the highest so far this month. The maximum temperature was recorded at 21.6 degree Celsius.
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According to the Meteorological Department, the city recorded a maximum temperature of 25.9 degrees Celsius on Monday (January 23) – the highest for the month in four years. Clouds trap heat that passes through during the day, keeping nighttime temperatures above normal. However, cloudy weather lowers the daytime temperature by blocking exposure to the sun.
The sky is likely to remain cloudy in Delhi for the next four to five days. A fresh Western Disturbance may cause light rain on January 29. Delhi has not recorded any rainfall so far this winter season. The Meteorological Department has attributed this to the lack of strong western disturbances in November and December. Last year, the city recorded 82.2 mm of rainfall in January, the highest for the month since 1901.
The capital recorded eight days of cold wave in January this year, the highest for the month in 15 years. It witnessed seven days of cold wave in January 2020 while last year did not record any such day. According to IMD data, the city recorded two severe cold wave conditions between January 16 and January 18 and January 5 to 9. However, it did not record coldest days. Delhi has also witnessed over 50 hours of dense fog so far this month, which is the highest since 2019.
(With inputs from PTI)