BackWhat makes this year’s winter warmer?
Skymet says the mild winter spell has been caused due to the anti-cyclonic circulation forming over Rajasthan
Premium
New Delhi: The mild winter is likely to continue on New Year’s eve due to a combination of local weather factors, the El Nino effect and climate change.
On 31 December, the maximum temperature is likely to hover around mid 20 deg Celcius and between 12 deg and 13 deg Celcius in the night, according to Skymet Weather Services Pvt. Ltd.
“The mild winter spell has been caused due to the anti-cyclonic circulation forming over Rajasthan. It is bringing in warmer and drier winds from the west," the private weather forecaster said. “Even during the first few days on January, similar weather along with shallow or moderate fog will persist."
This could be the local factor but some meteorologists are also citing El Nino as a reason. El Nino, a periodic weather event that drives up global temperatures and disrupts weather pattern, happens when steady, westward-blowing trade winds in the Pacific Ocean weaken or even reverse direction, triggering an abnormal warming of the upper ocean in the central and eastern tropical Pacific. It has also been a reason for drier monsoons in India.
“Winter temperatures in El Nino years are usually above normal. It can be seen in 2009, 2010, 2003, which were also El Nino years," said D.S. Pai, chief of long-range forecasting division at India Meteorological Department (IMD).
However, according to IMD data, India’s temperatures during winters and post monsoon have been rising since 1980.
The 2015 El Nino has made the year the warmest ever, says World Meteorological Organisation. It has been the strongest since 1997-98 and is yet to peak, according to meteorological agencies across the world. It will decline in 2016, but a return to normal is not expected until autumn.
US National Aeronautical and Space Administration (Nasa) has shown satellite images depicting El Nino patterns in 2015 and 1997. The images show nearly identical, unusually high sea surface heights along the equator in the central and eastern Pacific: the signature of a big and powerful El Nino.
Nasa noted that El Nino this year has caused heat waves in India caused by delayed monsoon rains, Pacific island sea level drops, droughts in South Africa, flooding in South America and a record-breaking hurricane season in the eastern tropical Pacific.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
