Mercury crosses 41 degrees C-mark in A.P.

Sustained heating over east and east-central India has seen mercury level at isolated places in interior Andhra Pradesh breach the 40 degree Celsius-mark.

In fact, Anantapur, at 41.4 degree Celsius, was the hottest place in the country during the 24 hours ending Wednesday morning, an India Meteorological Department (IMD) update said.

LIKELY RESPITE

Model forecasts are of the view that the heating trend would largely hold over the region until the weekend (Saturday). Some respite could be had as the causative high-pressure area with sinking hot air extending right from the Pacific recedes to the Maritime continent (South-East Asia and beyond) early next week.

According to the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF), the net effect would be that the maximum heating trend would slowly shift across the peninsula to the west where it would be anchored by another high-pressure region advancing from West Asia.

In fact, the Global Forecast System of the US Navy's Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Centre sees this high-pressure region proceeding to invade extreme northwest and north India by March 17.

Crucially enough, this is shown to happen after a cyclonic circulation/low-pressure area gets lobbed into northwest India by westerlies, blowing around the advancing head of the high-pressure system.

Updated forecasts from the ECMWF see the ‘low' being pushed to east India by the advancing high-pressure region from West Asia. Over the past few days, it has been suggesting that the system might land up more to the west over central India.

WIND CONFLUENCE

Meanwhile, an IMD update on Wednesday said that confluence of winds from opposite directions would take place over north Maharashtra and adjoining Telangana during the next two days.

This is expected to cause isolated light rain or thundershowers over Maharashtra and parts of Madhya Pradesh, south Chhattisgarh, north Andhra Pradesh and Orissa during this period.

The prevailing feeble western disturbance over north Jammu and Kashmir and neighbourhood is moving away from north India. A fresh western disturbance is likely to affect the western Himalayan region during the next 24 hours. A gradual strengthening of winds is likely over the Indo-Gangetic plains.

Satellite imagery showed the presence of convective clouds capable of producing snow/rains over parts of Jammu and Kashmir. Low to medium clouds (partly cloudy conditions) were seen over parts of western Himalayan region, Punjab, peninsular India and north Andaman Sea.


During the past 24 hours, both maximum and minimum temperatures have risen by about 2 degree Celsius over many parts of northwest and central India. They were above normal by 4 – 7 degree Celsius also over western Himalaya region, thanks to the presence of moisture and clouding associated with the incoming western disturbance.

Isolated rain or snow is likely to occur over Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh during the next 24 hours, the IMD said. Minimum and maximum temperatures over northwest, central and east India are expected to rise slightly during the next two days.

Outlook until Monday next spoke about the possibility of isolated rain or thundershowers over Andaman and Nicobar Islands and extreme south peninsular India. By this time, the prevailing high-pressure over the region would have receded to the east, according to the model forecasts.