Mumbai sizzles at 40.9 degrees on Saturday

MUMBAI: For the first time this season maximum temperatures recorded in Mumbai were seen touching 40.9 degree Celsius on Saturday. Apart from being the

highest maximum temperature

for the season it was also the third highest recorded for the month of March over the last one decade.


At 40.9 degrees maximum temperatures were less than one degree of the all time highest maximum temperature recorded for the month of March at 41.7 degrees.

Previously over the past 10 years in March 2018, maximum temperatures were seen touching 41 degrees and also in March 2011 when it touched 41.3 degrees on March 17.

Weathermen said that the rise in temperatures was owing to the heat wave conditions that are prevailing over Konkan and will continue during next 24 hours. Thereafter they forecast a gradual reduction in maximum temperatures over the coast. The maximum temperatures recorded by the IMD

Santacruz

observatory on Saturday was 40.9 degrees which was 7.7 degree above normal while the

IMD Colaba observatory

recorded maximum temperatures of 38 degrees which was six degrees above normal. The relative humidity recorded by the

IMD Colaba

and Santacruz observatory was 46% and 24% respectively.

Shubhangi Bhute, scientist

IMD Mumbai

said that winds are coming from Rajasthan which are hot and dry. "These are north easterly winds and because of subsidence of hot air temperature rises," she said.

On social media like Twitter, many pointed out how this was just the beginning of the rise in temperatures considering the summer season last till May. "I think Mumbai heat got confused between March and May. Yeh kya May wali garmi March mein ho rahi hai," read a tweet from the handle @AlwaysALilExtra while another tweet read, "Calm down Mumbai heat we didn't even celebrate Holi yet," read a tweet from the twitter handle @Sharanya2003.

Meanwhile the minimum temperatures recorded by the IMD Colaba and Santacruz observatory also continued to stay on the higher side as the IMD Colaba observatory recorded minimum temperatures of 25 degrees and IMD Colaba observatory 22.2 degrees which was 1.2 degrees above normal in case of Colaba and 0.5 degrees below normal. the relative humidity recorded by the IMD Colaba and Santacruz observatory was 58% and 30%.


Meanwhile, higher temperatures kept the city’s air quality index in the poor category. According to the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), Mumbai’s overall AQI for PM 2.5 on Saturday was 2276 which was higher than 228 recorded a day earlier. An AQI between 200 and 300 is considered poor and people with heart or lung disease, older adults and children should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion.

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