GURUGRAM: A blanket of thick fog enveloped the city on Monday morning as the minimum temperature fell to 5.8 degrees Celsius, a notch below the season’s normal, from 7 degrees on Sunday. But Monday felt chillier than the 2-degree drop because daytime temperature hovered around the 16-degree Celsius mark. It was 16.3 degrees Celsius, four notches below normal, compared to 19.6 degrees the day before.According to the IMD, the minimum temperature is expected to fall further and may touch 3 degrees by Friday due to the prevailing cold and dry north-westerly winds. Moderate to dense fog is likely to continue for the next 3-4 days due to high moisture content in the air and low wind speeds. Visibility dipped to 500 metres in the early morning hours on Monday. Though it improved to 800 metres by 8am, the haze didn’t fully lift throughout the day, making it chillier. On December 26, the city recorded the lowest maximum temperature this season at 11.7 degrees, when it had a ‘severe cold day’. The IMD declares a ‘cold day’ when the minimum temperature of a station is less than 10 degrees and the maximum temperature’s departure from normal is between 4.5 degrees and 6.4 degrees. A ‘severe cold day’ is recorded when the maximum temperature’s departure from normal is more than 6.5 degrees. A ‘cold wave’ is declared when the minimum temperature of the station is less than 4 degrees Celsius.”Cold north-westerlies are blowing into the region, causing a dip in temperature. Mercury will gradually fall by 2-3 degrees in the coming days. Due to dense fog and blocked sunlight, isolated parts of Haryana, including Hisar and Chandigarh, witnessed ‘cold day’ and ‘severe cold day’ conditions on Monday,” said Manmohan Singh, director, IMD (Chandigarh).IMD has forecast moderate to dense fog in the morning hours of Tuesday and clear skies later in the day. The minimum and maximum temperatures are expected to hover around 5 and 20 degrees Celsius, respectively. Meanwhile, the city’s air quality index deteriorated on Monday and slipped to ‘poor’. The overall AQI was 266, compared to 185 the previous day.Meanwhile, Delhi saw very dense fog on Monday morning that brought visibility down to 50 metres in Palam area. The air quality turned ‘very poor’, prompting the centre’s panel on air quality to continue restrictions under category-3 of Graded Response Action Plan, including a ban on private constructions. A total of 18 Delhi-bound trains were delayed due to fog, however, IGI airport saw no diversions or delays. The minimum temperature soared by two degrees Celsius with the city’s base station, Safdarjung, recording 7.6 degrees Celsius on Monday, the season’s normal. The maximum temperature dropped by three degrees Celsius and hovered around 17 degrees Celsius, two degrees below the season’s average.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/january-worry-mercury-may-plunge-to-3-degree-celsius-this-week-in-gurugram/articleshow/96695844.cms