NEW DELHI: The national capital woke up to a cloudy morning skies with light rainfall in parts of the city on Tuesday with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting light showers throughout the day.
On Wednesday the sky is likely to remain clear, the weather office said. Smog and shallow fog are expected in most places in early morning, with moderate fog in isolated areas, it added.
As of 5 pm on Tuesday, the Safdarjung weather station recorded 0.5 mm rainfall. The minimum temperature settled at 12.8 degrees Celsius, 4.4 degrees above average, while the maximum temperature was 26 degrees Celsius, 3.7 notches above normal, as per IMD.
Humidity levels fluctuated between 91 and 76 per cent during the day, while the air quality remained in the “poor” category, with average Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded 264.
As per sources, Delhi weather is likely to take a U-turn from sunny mornings, returning to colder morning conditions.
This week, the national capital is slated to experience a mix of rain and foggy conditions.
As per the IMD bulletin, fog will dominate the morning-scape in the capital from February 5 onward. Temperatures are likely to hover between 9°C to 25°C in the coming days.
Meanwhile, the city witnessed its hottest January since 2019, attributed to lack of rain-bringing western disturbances.
Hottest January since 2019
This year, the national capital experienced its warmest January since 2019, with an average maximum temperature of 21.1 °C, slightly above the long-term average of 20.1°C.
IMD data has indicates higher-than-usual night temperatures. Meteorologists have attributed this warmth to lack of strong western disturbances, which typically bring rain and cooler conditions. “This month, while western disturbances did pass through North India, most of them were feeble and did not bring significant snow or rainfall,” expert Mahesh Palawat said.