Delhi remained warm on Friday, with the maximum temperature settling at 39.1 degrees Celsius, one degree above normal, even as the India Meteorological Department issued a yellow alert and forecast thunderstorms with lightning, light rain and gusty winds during the night.
The city began the day under partly cloudy skies, with the minimum temperature recorded at 27 degrees Celsius, 0.5 degrees lower than the seasonal average.
Similar weather conditions are likely to continue on Sunday, with the Met Office predicting thunderstorms and rain in parts of the national capital.
Read also | The Regional Meteorological Center says strong winds are likely to blow in Delhi-NCR during the next two hours
Yellow alert in Delhi today
The Ridge recorded the highest maximum temperature in Delhi-NCR at 40 degrees Celsius, 1.7 degrees above normal, station data showed. Palam and Ayanagar recorded maximum temperatures of 39.6 degrees Celsius each, with an exit of 0.4 degrees and one degree above normal, respectively. Lodhi Road recorded a maximum temperature of 39.2 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degrees above normal.
According to IMD, minimum temperatures across Delhi ranged between 24°C and 27°C in the last 24 hours, while maximum temperatures ranged between 39°C and 40°C. Minimum temperatures were significantly lower than average by 3.1 degrees Celsius to 5 degrees Celsius in isolated places and below average by about 1.6 degrees Celsius to 3 degrees Celsius in some areas, while the rest of the parts recorded near-normal temperatures.
Maximum temperatures were higher than normal by 1.6 degrees Celsius to 3 degrees Celsius in isolated places and remained normal in other places. Southwest winds of 10-15 km/h prevail during the day, reaching speeds of 46 km/h in Palam at 5 pm.
Delhi’s air quality remained in the ‘moderate’ category, with the air quality index (AQI) standing at 143 in the evening, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.
According to the CPCB, an AQI between 0 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”.
