Weather updates: After a respite for two days, cold waves and cold day conditions again hit parts of Delhi on Saturday. According to the predictions of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the winter chill would intensify further in early January. Relative humidity recorded at 8:30 am was 90 per cent, it said.
The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 21 degrees Celsius in the national capital. Notably, for the past two days, north India experienced warm weather due to the influence of a western disturbance, characterised by warm moist winds from the Middle East.
The mercury will drop to 4 degrees Celsius by Monday (January 2). Dense fog and cold wave conditions are predicted in parts of Delhi from January 1 to 4, the IMD forecast.
It is worth mentioning a day is termed "severe cold" when the maximum is 6.5 degrees or more below normal. A cold day is when the minimum temperature is less than or equal to 10 degrees Celsius below normal and the maximum temperature is at least 4.5 degrees below normal. According to the IMD, 'very dense' fog is when visibility is between 0 and 50 metres, 51 and 200 metres is 'dense', 201 and 500 'moderate', and 501 and 1,000 'shallow'.
In the plains, the Met office declares a cold wave if the minimum temperature dips to four degrees Celsius or when the minimum temperature is 10 degrees Celsius or below and is 4.5 notches below normal. A severe cold wave is when the minimum temperature dips to two degrees Celsius or the departure from normal is more than 6.4 degrees Celsius.
Pollution updates
For a third consecutive day, the air quality in the national capital remained under the "very poor" category on Saturday as it recorded an AQI of 369, according to data from the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).
Experts have said that the air quality may also remain in a "very poor" category on Sunday.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) between zero and 50 is considered "good"; 51 and 100 "satisfactory"; 101 and 200 "moderate"; 201 and 300 "poor"; 301 and 400 "very poor"; and 401 and 500 severe.
On Saturday morning, the AQI in Mathura Road stood at 379, followed by Dhirpur and Lodhi Road at 369 each; Pusa 363; and Ayanagar 354.
Meanwhile, Delhi's neighbouring Noida and Gurugram recorded an AQI of 388 and 374, respectively, both under the "very poor" category.
(With inputs from agencies)
