Brrrr, Its cold here

November 24, 2016

Cooling the city with its changing weather, Pune’s reducing temperatures have caused many to shiver. Puneites are getting ready to pull out their warm sweaters and jumpers as the approaching winter could be a chilly one. This may not be the coolest winter that the city will experience but according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) temperatures could drop as low as six degrees in the coming months.

Speaking to Pune365, Sunitha Devi, Head of the Weather Section at the IMD says that climatologically speaking, January is the coldest month for Pune. “The extreme lowest figure to which the night minimum temperature has fallen over Pune had been, 1.7 degree Celsius on January 17, 1935. The lowest in the recent past, which stands to be the second lowest, had been 2.8 degree Celsius on January 2, 1991.The return period of these figures being too large, we may not expect, the night minimum to fall this low, unless some highly anomalous flow pattern occur.”

Will this be the coolest winter for Pune?

Devi explains that this won’t be the coolest winter that the city will experience. She further adds that the coldest temperature recorded in November 1964 in the city is measured at 4.6 degree Celsius. “At night, temperatures have dropped to 8 degree Celsius in the past Novembers like in 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999, 2005, 2007 and 2012. The minimum temperature recorded on November 19, 2012 had been 7.9 degree Celsius. This year’s cold spell witnessed lowest temperatures around 9 degree Celsius,” she says.

Could it get so cold for Puneites to experience snow?

“For snow to occur, the temperatures in the lower levels and at the surface should become sub-zero. It is unlikely to happen. But the city is prone to hailstorms, which is another solid state precipitation, owing to its high altitude,” adds Devi.

Specific to this year, Pune’s weather has not shown any irregular patterns and the dipping temperatures have a scientific reason which is about the Pacific Ocean going through a transition from El Nino to La Nina climatic patterns. Explaining this process in detail Devi says, “This change over is getting reflected in the circulation pattern of the atmospheric winds as well and the easterly waves are not becoming active as usually is the case in November. This could be one of the reasons for the lower temperatures over the northern parts of the peninsular India at this time of the year.”

As the city prepares for the approaching winter, let’s also keep in mind that this season brings with it not just the cool weather but it also gives us a chance to experience the unique joy of cosily snuggling with a cup of hot chai!