© K M Sharma/BCCL Patna / FileSchool children shiver due to cold conditions
An unusual and powerful spell of "Western Disturbances", originating in the Mediterranean sea, has made India shiver for the past fortnight. Unfortunately, the spell, striking once in four to five decades, will continue to freeze people on New Year's Eve too.
"It is a long spell, very unique in nature, and would affect entire northwest India," says Dr Rajendra Jenamani, senior scientist at the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The thick cover of smog on the Indo-Gangetic plains and the uneven warming of the Indian Ocean has a role to play in this robust spell of Western Disturbances. The extratropical storms originating in the Mediterranean region are causing sudden winter rain in the northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent, which have brought the day temperatures in some Indian cities below 12 degrees Celsius.
Comment: Skymet Weather defines W
estern Disturbance as "a low pressure area or a trough over surface or the upper-air in the westerly winds regime, north of 20°N, causing changes in pressure, wind pattern and temperature fields. It is accompanied by cloudiness, with or without precipitation."
The term Western Disturbance (WD) was coined by Indian meteorologists for describing the systems moving from the west to east direction.
A Western Disturbance weather pattern from 2015
Comment: Skymet Weather defines Western Disturbance as "a low pressure area or a trough over surface or the upper-air in the westerly winds regime, north of 20°N, causing changes in pressure, wind pattern and temperature fields. It is accompanied by cloudiness, with or without precipitation."
The term Western Disturbance (WD) was coined by Indian meteorologists for describing the systems moving from the west to east direction.