Mercury falls by 3.6°C, strong wind helps clean up city's air

GURGAON: The city saw a significant drop in the maximum temperature on Thursday although high humidity kept the outdoors warm. The day temperature was recorded at 37.4 degrees Celsius, while it was 41 degrees Celsius on Wednesday.
The minimum temperature also dropped to 23.4 degrees Celsius from 26.2 degrees Celsius on Wednesday.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the minimum temperature is likely to hover between 24 and 25 degrees Celsius in the coming days, while the maximum temperature will be around 40 degrees Celsius. Gurgaon is likely to witness showers for two days next week, but it will not bring big relief from heat, an IMD official said.
The city's air quality index (AQI) on Thursday was recorded at 160 (moderate). Strong winds helped the AQI improve. On Wednesday, it was 280 (poor). According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), "The predominant surface wind is likely to be coming from the northwest directions to Delhi-NCR with wind speed of 8-10 kmph. AQI is likely be between 'moderate' and 'poor' category for the next five days."
Meanwhile, Delhi saw over five-degree drop in daytime temperature on Thursday although a high humidity with clear skies kept the outdoors warm and the discomfort level high.
The city also recorded light rain between late Wednesday night till 8.30am on Thursday. The base station at Safdarjung recorded 9.8 mm rainfall till 8.30 am. Mayur Vihar recorded 12.5 mm, Pusa recorded 10.7 mm and Pitampura recorded 5 mm.The Met department expects day temperatures to touch 43 degrees Celsius by Sunday. According to the weather department, the maximum temperature will begin to rise from Friday onwards. "The temperature will rise till May 21 and remain constant on May 22. There is a fresh western disturbance approaching the region on May 22 night, so there are chances of rain on May 23 and 24," said Kuldeep Srivastava, weather scientist at IMD. Light rain on Wednesday improved the AQI from very poor to moderate.
On Thursday, the maximum temperature was 36.5 degrees Celsius, four notches below normal against 41.1 degrees Celsius a day earlier. The minimum temperature was 21.9 degrees Celsius, five notches below normal and against 25.4 degrees Celsius a day earlier. Due to rain, there was spike in humidity, which on Thursday oscillated between 40% and 94%.