Spike in capital's temp
The next four weeks would also be near-normal for maximum temperatures.
Thiruvananthapuram: The capital city experienced a record 38.2 degrees Celsius on Thursday owing to north-easterly winds and hot and dry conditions prevailing in neighbouring States, but this spike is an isolated phenomenon, according to the Met Office.
The temperature dipped to 34 degree Celsius in the city on Friday, proving the Met office assessment that the hot spike was transient. The weather pattern had shifted to near normal after Thursday’s high.
The next four weeks would also be near-normal for maximum temperatures. According to the 4-week rainfall forecast, the temperature pattern would be above the normal in the 30-35 degree Celsius range. This is because Kerala is part of the landmass that comes face to face with the sun in the months ahead, said Met office director Dr K. Santosh.
He discounted rumours about the Pongala fire from lakhs of temporary hearths being responsible for the spike in temperatures, saying no such phenomenon has been observed. “We had verified this in previous years and had not seen any noticeable rise in temperatures on account of pongala. Not only that, temperatures across the State-not merely in the city comprising Attukal- were above normal by several degrees”, he said.
Another reason for the seasonal high is the 33 percent deficient rainfall since January this year.