NEW DELHI: The city recorded yet another “very poor” day with an AQI reading of 337 at 4pm on Sunday. Pollution monitoring agencies expect the air quality to remain very poor for at least three more days.The maximum temperature also soared, resulting in the warmest day of the year and the warmest February day since 2021. According to the India Meteorological Department, the maximum temperature at Safdarjung was recorded at 31.5 degree Celsius, seven notches above the season’s normal, against 29.6 degree Celsius a day earlier.The minimum temperature was recorded at 11.4 degree Celsius, the normal for the season, against 11.9 degree Celsius a day earlier. The city also recorded shallow fog during the morning hours as the visibility dropped to 500 metres at 6.30am.According to IMD, the maximum and minimum temperatures may record a slight rise over the next few days. “The wind speed is slow and blowing in from the west. This is why the maximum temperature is rising. The wind speed on Sunday was 6-7 kmph, which is not enough to control the soaring temperature. This is also to blame for the shallow fog in the morning,” said Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist, IMD. He added that the daytime temperature may hover around 31-32 degree Celsius for the next few days. Meanwhile, the air quality continued to be very poor. The air quality index, on a scale of 0 to 500, stood at 332 on Sunday . The air quality was very poor on Saturday as well and fluctuated throughout the day. According to the pollution monitoring agencies, the air quality is likely to continue in the very poor zone for at least next three days. “The overall AQI today indicates ‘very poor’ air quality. Fine particles (less than 2.5 micrometer) contribute about 56% to PM10. For the next three days, surface wind speed (calm to 4; 8 to 12 km/h) and temperatures (maximum 30-32 degree Celsius; minimum 11-13 degree Celsius) are likely to worsen the air quality. Mixing layer height is likely to be about 1.5 km that causes moderate ventilation of pollutants,” speed,” stated the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/warmest-february-day-in-delhi-since-2021-air-quality-stays-very-poor/articleshow/98074747.cms