Delhi-NCR winter update: Several places in Delhi are likely to reel under cold waves from Monday to Wednesday. The minimum temperature is expected to dip down to 3 degrees Celsius. From January 5 to January 9, Delhi witnessed an intense cold wave spell, the second longest in the month in a decade, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) data.
Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh might also witness dense to very dense fog during night and morning hours for the next 5 days.
As per IMD, the minimum temperatures will possibly fall further by about 2 degrees Celsius over many parts of northwest and central India till January 17-18 and cold wave to severe cold wave conditions are very likely over many parts of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Punjab during this period.
How do we define a cold wave and a cold day?
The condition can be referred to as a cold wave when the minimum temperature dips to 2 degrees Celsius or the departure from the normal limits is by more than 6.4 notches.
A cold day is when the minimum temperature is less than or equal to 10 degrees Celsius and the maximum temperature is at least 4.5 notches below normal.
A severe cold day is when the maximum temperature is at least 6.5 notches below normal.
Here’s what the IMD has advised people
The weather department has asked people to wear several layers of loose-fitting, warm woollen clothing and to cover their heads, neck, hand, and toes. That’s not all, the IMD has also advised people to maintain ventilation while using heaters to avoid inhaling toxic fumes and avoid or limit outdoor activities.
The IMD said minimum temperatures will gradually rise by 3 to 5 degrees Celsius from January 18 to January 20 under the influence of a western disturbance.
Why is Delhi witnessing a cold wave?
Delhi is witnessing a cold wave due to a layer of dense fog persisting over the Indo-Gangetic plains for the past 10 to 11 days and a large gap between two western disturbances that allowed frosty winds from snow-clad mountains to blow in for a longer-than-usual period.
The Indo-Gangetic plains have a lot of moisture owing to a large number of water bodies and rivers in the region. High moisture content, low temperatures, and calm winds are the recipe for dense fog. Once the prevailing western disturbance retreats, frosty north-westerly winds will start blowing toward the plains.
It is going to turn even colder until western disturbances provide some relief starting Thursday.