Bengaluru Braces For Cold: Decoding IMD Prediction And Climate Change In IT Capital
“The dip in temperature has been due to the northeasterly winds that have been crossing Bengaluru," N Puviarasan, Scientist F and Head, Meteorological Centre, Bengaluru told News18
Bengaluru is bracing for cold as the temperature in the IT capital is set to touch 15 degrees Celsius for the next two days owing to the northeasterly winds, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast.
Scientists say that the effect of global warming can also be seen with the temperature slowly likely to climb to 17-18 degrees Celsius.
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“The dip in temperature has been due to the northeasterly winds that have been crossing Bengaluru. With a low pressure over the Bay of Bengal. It is expected to move towards the Tamil Nadu coast and moving northwards. We can expect the easterly winds and the temperature will rise from then on," N Puviarasan, Scientist F and Head, Meteorological Centre, Bengaluru told News18.
While there are reports that Bengaluru may touch 12 degrees Celsius in the next week, making it among the coldest in December, the IMD expert contradicts it, saying that the IMD data indicates otherwise.
“The temperature in Bengaluru is around 15-15.5 degrees Celsius only. There will be no further drop," he said.
CLIMATE CHANGE OVER THE YEARS
Explaining how Bengaluru temperatures have been changing over the years, he said that Bengaluru recorded the lowest minimum temperature in 1883 when the city was freezing at 8.9 degrees Celsius, and in the last decade, the lowest minimum in December was 12.0 degrees Celsius in 2016. The next was 2011 when it was 12.8 degrees Celsius.
In 2022, it was 14.4 degrees Celsius; in 2023, the temperature was 13.2 degrees Celsius, and last year, it was 14.5 degrees Celsius, he said.
The southern part of India has been facing low-pressure systems along the coast in recent weeks, but the official said that that development brought in rains in the city and not necessarily contributed to the drop in temperatures in the IT capital.
However, there are parts of Karnataka that are seeing a severe drop in temperature, where it has seen a deviation of 6-7 degrees Celsius from normal winter conditions.
Districts such as Raichur, Bidar, Kalaburagi and Vijayapura are witnessing minimum temperatures that are five to six degrees below normal, according to the IMD forecast.
On Monday and Tuesday, the minimum temperature in Bengaluru was below normal for December with the temperature dipping at night. The minimum temperature on Monday was 15.5°C in Bengaluru city and 15°C at the Kempegowda International Airport and the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Airport.
The minimum temperature is expected to touch 12.4°C on Tuesday night and 12.9°C on Wednesday.
There is also a possibility of rain from Thursday, December 19, especially in south Karnataka as there is a low-pressure brewing, but it is expected to be light. “On December 19, the low pressure will come close to the Tamil Nadu coast and at that time the easterly winds will blow and that will increase the minimum temperature upwards," the IMD official said.
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