NEW DELHI: Delhi is set to turn noticeably colder over the next few days, with minimum temperatures likely to fall below normal from November 24, according to forecasts by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). While the city’s night temperatures will remain near normal until November 23, they are expected to dip to 8–10 degrees celsius between November 24 and 27, around 1.6 degrees celsius to 3 degrees celsius below the seasonal average.
The IMD said no significant weather systems are influencing northwest India at present, but clearer skies and light winds will allow night-time cooling to intensify. On Friday, Safdarjung, the city’s base station, recorded a minimum of 11.2 degrees celsius and a maximum of 28.2 degrees celsius. Minimum temperatures across most stations ranged between 11 degrees celsius and 13 degrees celsius, with no rainfall reported anywhere.
Morning fog is expected to gradually become denser as temperatures fall. After shallow fog on November 22 and 23, most parts of Delhi-NCR may experience shallow to moderate fog from November 24 onward, the bulletin stated. Visibility during shallow fog typically stays between 500–1,000 metres and can drop to 200–499 metres under moderate fog conditions.
Daytime temperatures will also decline slightly, settling between 23 degrees celsius and 26 degrees celsius through next week. Winds will remain light, generally northwesterly during the day and northerly or northeasterly at night.
District-wise forecasts show uniform conditions across Delhi and NCR cities with clear skies during the day and fog in the early hours.
Meanwhile, the city’s air quality improved slightly on Friday, recording a 24-hour average AQI of 364, compared to 391 on the day before. However, this is still in the ‘Very Poor’ category. However, 13 of the city’s monitoring stations still recorded an AQI above 400.