Fog to get worse today, temp may drop to 12°C, say officials

NEWDELHI:The city was engulfed in dense fog on Wednesday as people couldn’t see beyond 50 metres in the early hours of the morning. Officials expect this situation to continue, and may even get worse on Thursday.

The Regional Weather Forecast Centre (RWFC) has predicted dense to very dense fog for the national capital on Thursday, with maximum and minimum temperatures expected to be 25°C and 12°C, respectively.

“Indira Gandhi International Airport may experience very dense fog from 3am to 9am on Thursday, with visibility dropping to less than 50metre,” RK Jenamani, director of IGI MeT Department said.

Flight operations are usually affected when visibility levels drop below 200 metre.

The RWFC scientist also spoke about the unique character of the wind which means that particulate matter is not dispersed. “The calm and light variable winds, that are expected to persist, also prevent the dispersion of particulate matter,” he said.

With the AQI expected to hit very poor levels (~370) on Thursday, the high PM 2.5 levels mixed with the fog could spell another bout of smog in the near future, if the winds do not disperse the particulate matter.

On Wednesday, visibility varied between 50 metre to 1,000 metre,affecting flights, road transport, and everyday life in the city, according to the RWFC. The changing wind patterns, the cyclonic air movement over the Bay of Bengal, and the lowered winter temperatures all contribute to the development of fog in the city.

“The relative humidity in the city is close to 100%; this means there is a lot of moisture in the air. During cold climates, this moisture creates fog,” explained a scientist at RWFC.