Summer Is Not Here Yet, But Temperature In Gujarat's Bhuj Has Already Hit 40ˇăC
On Thursday, for the first time this season, the day temperature in Bhuj, Gujarat, was recorded at over 40 degrees. Bhuj recorded a maximum temperature of 40.3 degrees C on Thursday, its highest for February in at least 12 years. In contrast, Bhuj recorded the first 40 degrees C during the second week of March 2022.
It is mid-February and most parts of India are slowly transitioning from winter to summer.
With the La Nina conditions weakening and the possibility of another El Nino returning, summer 2023 is predicted to be harsh and hot.
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40 degrees in Bhuj
The signs of this have already started showing even before the onset of the summer season; the temperature has hit the 40 degrees mark.
On Thursday, for the first time this season, the day temperature in Gujarat's Bhuj town was recorded at over 40 degrees.
According to The Times of India, Bhuj recorded a maximum temperature of 40.3 degrees C on Thursday, its highest for February in at least 12 years.
In contrast, Bhuj recorded the first 40 degrees C during the second week of March 2022.
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"As per readily available data, in the past 12 years, the highest temperature recorded at Bhuj in February was 39 degrees C on February 19, 2017. Thursday's temperature has surpassed that. More details are awaited," RK Jenamani, senior scientist at IMD, told The Times of India.
El Nino to return in 2023
The temperature has been rising across most parts of India in the past few days, and it is expected to touch the 30 degrees Celsius mark in Delhi by Sunday.
Last week the US government weather agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said that El Nino conditions could return this year.
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El Nino is a weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean that occurs every three to six years, involving the warmer ocean water spreading further and closer to the surface, often increasing extreme weather events.
According to the latest data, there is a low probability of this happening in March-April-May, rising to around 15% in April-May-June, and around 37% in May-June-July.
El Nino's impact on India
In the past, El Nino has resulted in warmer summers and weaker monsoon rains in India.
This was followed by La Nina, which saw above-average monsoons in India in the following years.
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2022 summer in India
2022 was the fifth warmest for India since 1901, when IMD started keeping weather records.
2022 also saw the highest number of heatwave days in a year in the country.
The country reported 280 heat wave days from March 11-May 18, 2022 ˇŞ the highest in 12 years.
This was five times more than the number of heat wave days in 2021.
A total of 16 states recorded heat wave days in India in 2022.
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Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
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