New Delhi, Jul 07, 2022, By Special Correspondent
New Delhi, Jul 7: The summer or pre-monsoon season this year has overtaken 2016 records as the second hottest pre-monsoon season in the country,
according to the latest findings by the Urban Lab of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
At the same time, winter and post-monsoon seasons are warming up faster, according to the CSE study.
Land surface temperatures in Delhi have been the highest since 2010 and the city recorded significant positive anomaly (temperature higher than expected) on all three temperature parameters.
In a bid to understand the warming trend in a comprehensive way, the study by CSE analysed the temperature trends by covering all three dimensions of heat stress -- surface air temperature, land surface temperature, and relative humidity (heat index).
In Delhi, air temperature has been 1.77 degrees Celsius hotter than 2010, and the land surface temperature 1.95 degrees Celsius hotter, the study said.
According to the CSE analysis, the daily average heat index in Delhi crossed 40 degrees Celsius in June, 2022. It said March and April have been unusually dry, but humidity started to rise in May with some scattered rain spells. But this spike in humidity has led to an increase in the heat index in the city, indicating increased thermal discomfort among the population.
It said that during the heatwave in May, 2022, land surface temperature across Delhi shot above 38 degrees Celsius, which was "unusual as the green pockets within the city have not heated up to this magnitude in the previous years," and that the average land surface temperature has been getting higher than daily average air temperature.
"Industrial and agricultural zone recorded highest increase in land surface temperature between March to May," the study said, adding that even the temperature of the water bodies rose to 29-30 degrees Celsius in May, which were well below 27 degrees Celsius in March.
CSE said the objective of the city analysis was to understand the combined effect of climate change induced unseasonal heatwaves.
The study is based on comparative statistical analysis of temperature anomalies and observed heat-related impact in Indian cities and regions.