Delhi Gripped by Intense Cold Wave for Sixth Consecutive Day
Residents of Delhi woke up to another bitterly cold morning on Friday. A shallow fog covered the city as the India Meteorological Department maintained its yellow alert for cold wave conditions. This marks the sixth day in a row that the capital has experienced these severe winter conditions.
Temperature Plunge Across Weather Stations
The mercury dropped significantly across various monitoring stations in Delhi. On Thursday, the Palam weather station recorded a minimum temperature of 2.3 degrees Celsius. Ayanagar followed closely with 2.7 degrees Celsius.
Safdarjung, which serves as the primary weather station for Delhi, reported a minimum temperature of 2.9 degrees Celsius. The Lodhi Road area logged 3.4 degrees Celsius. In the Safdarjung region specifically, temperatures fell 4.5 degrees below normal levels.
Record Low Temperatures for January
This reading represents Safdarjung's lowest minimum temperature in January over the past three years. The last time temperatures dropped this low was on January 16, 2023, when the mercury plunged to 1.4 degrees Celsius.
Just the previous day, on January 15, Delhi experienced its coldest morning of the current winter season. The temperature settled at 2.9 degrees Celsius that morning.
IMD Forecast and Weather Conditions
The India Meteorological Department issued a detailed forecast for Friday. They predicted a mainly clear sky that would become partly cloudy toward evening. Cold wave conditions are expected at isolated places across the city.
The weather office anticipates moderate fog at many locations with dense fog at isolated places during morning hours. For temperature ranges, the maximum is likely to hover between 21°C and 23°C while the minimum should range from 04°C to 06°C.
According to IMD calculations, the minimum temperature will likely be 1.6 to 3 degrees Celsius below normal today. Conversely, the maximum temperature is expected to be 1.6 to 3 degrees Celsius above normal.
Fog Disruption and Improved Visibility
Dense fog blanketed the capital city on Thursday morning. This caused significant disruption to flight operations at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport. Visibility dropped to approximately 50 metres at 7:00 AM, creating challenging conditions for air travel.
The situation improved somewhat on Friday morning. Visibility increased to around 800 metres by 6:00 AM, providing some relief to transportation services.
Delhi continues to battle these harsh winter conditions as residents bundle up against the cold. The persistent cold wave has made this one of the most challenging winter periods in recent years for the capital city.
