Clear skies, still air push mercury up

New Delhi: Delhi experienced clear skies and very low wind speed on Monday, leading to a rise in both maximum and minimum temperatures. The mercury is likely to rise further in the next few days.
At the city's base weather station, Safdarjung, the maximum temperature was 37.8 degrees Celsius, two notches above normal, compared with 36.6 degrees Celsius a day earlier. The minimum temperature settled at 21.6 degrees Celsius, one above normal, compared with 20.4 degrees Celsius on Sunday. At 38.2 degrees Celsius, Ayanagar was the warmest area of the city. The humidity oscillated between 32% and 81%.
According to the India Meteorological Department, the daytime temperature is expected to rise further, and the city will suffer a heatwave between April 16 and April 18. "A gradual rise in maximum temperatures by 3-4°C is likely until April 18. Under the influence of a western disturbance, maximum temperatures are likely to fall by 2-4°C from April 19 onwards," stated a forecast from IMD.
On Tuesday, the maximum temperature is likely to hover around 38 degrees Celsius; however, there is no heatwave warning. The mercury may rise to 42 degrees Celsius on Wednesday. On Thursday and Friday too, the maximum temperature is likely to be around 42 degrees Celsius. IMD has issued a heatwave warning for all these three days. A heatwave is realised when maximum temperatures are above or equal to 40 degrees Celsius, and the departure is 4.5 degrees above normal.
On Monday, the city's air quality continued to be moderate. The air quality index, on a scale of 0 to 400, was 194 compared to 178 a day earlier.
According to the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, the air quality is expected to worsen to the poor category on Tuesday. "The air quality is likely to be in the poor category on April 15 and April 16. It is likely to be in the moderate category on April 17. For the subsequent six days, it is likely to be in the moderate to poor category," stated the early warning system.