An intense heat wave affected a wide area of the country, from Ladakh to Jharkhand and large parts of northwest India. The maximum temperature in Prayagraj reached 47.6 degrees Celsius, while Nubra, situated in the high Himalayas, recorded 26.2 degrees.
The meteorological office reported that maximum temperatures were significantly higher than normal (5.1 degrees Celsius or more) in most areas of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Bihar.
In the absence of thunderstorms and rainfall caused by extratropical weather systems known as western disturbances, the national capital saw maximum temperatures exceeding 45 degrees Celsius, seven notches above normal for the season.
Dehradun, located in Uttarakhand, experienced a high temperature of 43.1 degrees Celsius, which was 9.5 degrees above the seasonal average. In Himachal Pradesh, Una recorded a temperature of 44 degrees, which was 6.7 degrees higher than the usual average.
Katra in Jammu and Kashmir reported a maximum temperature of 40.8 degrees Celsius, marking an increase of 5.7 degrees from the normal temperature. Meanwhile, Jammu saw the mercury rise to 44.3 degrees.
Daltonganj in Jharkhand witnessed a scorching maximum temperature of 46 degrees Celsius, which was 9.1 degrees above the season's regular temperature.
The criteria for a heat wave are satisfied when the highest temperature at a weather station reaches a minimum of 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees in coastal areas, and 30 degrees in hilly regions. The departure from the normal temperature should also be at least 4.5 notches.
A severe heat wave is declared if the departure from normal exceeds 6.4 notches.
Many areas, including Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, western Rajasthan, western Uttar Pradesh, and eastern Madhya Pradesh, had warm nights with minimum temperatures of 5.1 notches or above normal.
The meteorological department predicts that there will be no alteration in the highest temperatures in northwest India in the next 24 hours. Afterwards, a drop of 2 degrees Celsius is anticipated.
Despite that, central and eastern India will experience persistently high temperatures for the following three days and can anticipate some relief thereafter.
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