With the October chill setting in, the minimum temperature dropped to 18°C for the first time this season, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The minimum temperature fell from 19.5°C on Friday to 18.3°C on Saturday, 1 degree below normal. It had first dropped below 20°C on Thursday when it went down to 19.8°C. It is expected to continue the downward trend till the end of the month.
While the temperature has started sliding, as per IMD officials, it remains close to the normal value, which is taken by calculating the average temperature of a day for the past 30 years.
Towards the end of the month, the minimum temperature may even drop to around 13°C to 14°C. Last year, the coldest night in the month was on October 27, when the mercury had gone down to 13.2°C.
As per IMD Chandigarh director Surender Paul, dry weather is likely to continue and temperature will keep reducing gradually as the season is changing.
The maximum temperature, meanwhile, rose from 33.1°C on Friday to 33.7°C on Saturday, 1.6 degrees above normal. Paul said small variations can occur, but an average fall in temperature by around 1-2 degrees per week can be expected in the coming days.
Over the next three days, the maximum temperature will remain between 34°C and 35°C, and the minimum temperature around 19°C.
No major change in AQI after Dussehra celebrations
With the UT administration permitting only the use of green crackers on Dussehra, the air quality didn’t take a major hit anywhere in the city.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) went past the 100 mark only at the Sector 53 Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Station (CAAQMS), which falls in the moderate bracket, and was below 100 in Sectors 22 and 25, which is considered satisfactory.
At 8 pm, the average AQI of past 24 hours was 89 at the CAAQMS in Sector 22, 93 at the CAAQMS in Sector 25 and 101 at the CAAQMS in Sector 53.
Air with AQI between 51-100 can cause minor breathing discomfort to sensitive people. Between 101-200, it can cause breathing discomfort to people with lung and heart diseases.
According to IMD officials, AQI is significantly affected by temperature inversion, and as it gets colder it is expected to rise.
