Skymet weather

Relief from Cyclone Nilam likely

New Delhi, No one had expected Cyclone Nilam to become a severe kind of cyclonic storm but it did the same and that too just before landing along the extreme southern east coast of India. The storm is unleashing very heavy to extremely heavy rain in the south Penisular India. The night of October 31 could bring testing times for the people living in these parts.

Winds of damaging speeds are prevailing in the region and are causing damages across the region. The people living close to the sea and adjacent areas are experiencing worst ever weather. The persistent rain would keep the temperature down and a chill can be witnessed in the air.

The cyclone is likely to lash the region with rain for another 12 hours. The intensity of the rainfall would get subdued after this period as the storm will lose its energy. There are possibilities that the remnants of the cyclone would interact with the low pressure area about to form along the west coast near the southeast Arabian Sea but till then people in south India would get some reprieve from the inclement weather they are experiencing now.

Superstorm Sandy attacks US

Superstorm Sandy finally hits the eastern region on the southeast coast of New Jersey near Alantic city in the US. This was a tropical storm as it came out of a tropical region but with its current intensity and position, it is now being called a 'post-tropical Superstorm' - Sandy. Sandy is now penetrating inlands and will confront the cold fronts from the west to bring further havoc.

The superstorm is bearing unusual characteristics and extreme size, hitting one of the most populated regions in the world. Reports of downed trees, power outages and coastal flooding are being witnessed even before the arrival of the worst.

The eye of the circulation is now close to extreme southern New Jersey and Delaware Bay. The enormous expanse of strong winds will continue to push water offshore across a long stretch along the coast through high tides during the evening.

The winds will continue to blow during the next 24 hours and power woes remain intact.The torrential rains will cause local inland flooding, with generally higher rainfall amounts to the west and southwest in Maryland and Pennsylvania than in New York City and Boston. Snow will pile up in the mountains of the central Appalachians.

Happy Paddy times

New Delhi, “The farmer has to be an optimist or he wouldn’t still be a farmer”
Each year farmers spend lakhs on sowing their crop, hoping it will pour but the wait for the arrival of the rains makes them lose out on huge finances. To add to the problem, the wide gap between the scale of finance and the actual cultivation cost poses hardships for the farmers. Besides this, harvesters have a lurking fear of rain or no rain or heavy rain which too can spoil the harvest.
But times are good as oodles of rain this month marked the reason for the happiness and enthusiasm of the paddy growing farmers in Tiruvarur, Tamil Nadu. The north east monsoon rain was recorded at 221mm in only a week between 15-21 October. Experts have already started predicting better yield this agricultural season seeing this crucial plenty rain. Joyous feelings are echoing in parts of Mannargudi and Perugavazhndan, where private owners too are expecting a good yield.
Farmers of Tiruvarur were in tears seeing no rain conditions in the delta after the 23rd of September but still took a major risk by sowing the paddy, hoping it would pour. This step proved to be fruitful for them as their crop got its share of rain with the regular onset of north east monsoon in the area. Farmers say, now the ideal situation for them would be more spells of rain in the coming weeks.
A deep depression in the south west Bay of Bengal that can intensify into a cyclone, with heavy winds at a speed of 80 to 90 Kmph from the east and north, can bring widespread moderate to heavy rainfall in coastal Tamil Nadu in the next 24 hours. Though this would not lead to any substantial damage to the crops, it could lead to water stagnation in the fields. Experts say this excess water should be drained out after this possible storm is over or the heavy winds will uproot the plantation. Moreover they suggest stopping the transplantation of paddy till this storm doesn’t pass.
Thus, it becomes extremely essential for the farmers to be updated about the latest weather developments in their city and get important insights before, during and after the plantation time.

Sandy standstills lives in eastern US

The northwest moving Hurricane Sandy is giving sleepless nights to communities across eastern coast in the US. Flights are being canceled, transit systems are being suspended, New york stock exchange, Schools, College are expected to be shut for the next 48 hours. In awe of the fearful weather, lives in eastern coast of the US have come to a standstill and are likely to remain so during the next 48 hours.
The situation has aggravated to dangerous levels as the storm is likely to collide with the western cold front to cause heavy rain, massive snowfall in the mainland while high tides would bring flash floods in the coastal areas. The affected cities are Cape Hatteras, Charleston, Washington, Pittsburgh, New York, Syracuse, Boston and Burlington.

As rain from the leading edges of the monster Sandy began to fall over the Northeast, hundreds of thousands of people from Maryland to Connecticut were ordered to evacuate low-lying coastal areas, including 375,000 in lower Manhattan and other parts of New York City, 50,000 in Delaware and 30,000 in Atlantic City.

Madhya Pradesh started to feel the chill

New Delhi, A slight chill can be experienced now during mornings and late evening hours in the Central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The temperatures are likely to fall in the coming days and the winds are set to change their direction indicating the onset of winter in the region. Fall in temperatures and change in the wind direction would also reduce the difference between the maximum and the minimum temperatures leading to cold chills even during day time.
The maximum temperature in Bhopal was recorded at 31.3°C and the minimum remained at 16.5°C.

Indore recorded a maximum temperature of 31.0°C against a minimum of 15.4°C. The maximum temperature in Gwalior was recorded at 31.7°C whereas the minimum stood at 13.9 °C. The maximum and minimum temperatures in Jabalpur were respectively recorded at 29.7°C, 15.2°C. Similar trends in temperatures are likely to prevail in the state during the next 24 to 48 hours.

'Real Kashmir'

New Delhi, The enchanting and mesmerizing beauty of Jammu and Kashmir could leave anyone spellbound. This ‘heaven on earth’ seems like it was created by God himself.  In spite of a history of conflicts, Kashmir’s magnificent charm does not fail to put people in a state of bliss and make them visit it again and again!

But there’s another facet to this beauty which people miss each time. Kashmir isn’t just Gulmarg, Sonmarg, Pahalgam or the lake Shikaras. Kashmir tourist packages for travelers from all across the world sadly concentrate only on these most visited and already known touristy spots. This is one of the major reasons why J&K, inspite of having tremendous potential, has not been able to get it's share in the tourism space. A lack of trained and professional manpower in areas equally beautiful but less known to people is also seen as a reason for this.

Thus realizing the urgency and the need to push the state’s tourism activities further, the University of Jammu and Kashmir has launched a Masters program in Travel and Hospitality to churn out a large number of trained professionals to bridge the gap in the industry and help in streamlining the tourism policy without compromising on the ecological factors. The faculty at the University feels people from the valley, who know the culture better should be a part of this program since it's only them who can show travelers the unseen and unknown, ‘Real Kashmir’.

“Common cold” or Dengue??

New Delhi, Winter comes and you don’t feel like getting up from bed for hours. Your nose is runny, head feels like a bass drum, joints ache and your throat so sore as though someone used it like a grater overnight. But that’s ok, there’s nothing to worry about! You know it’s just a common cold and it will go away on its own in a few days. There’s anyways not much you can do other than treat the symptoms and let the cold run its course. But as days go by, you see turning worse than before, it’s bad enough to make your days seem longer, tiring and challenging and despite your best efforts to get rid of it for a week, it doesn’t leave you.

Seeing the alarming number of 600 and more dengue cases in this season itself, you mustn’t delay in seeking urgent medical advice to save yourself from the fast growing vector borne infection.

Though it’s believed that the dengue spreading aedes aegypti mosquito gets killed in the cold, this time even the onset of winters could not spare people from the mosquito bites spreading a whole spectrum of viral diseases. A steep rise in the number of cases is being seen everyday with Sunday alone reporting over 30 cases in the Capital. Cities like Chandigarh and Patiala too reported cases. With blood banks and platelet separator machines working round the clock, it is only an indicator of how big the problem actually is.

As Delhi goes on high alert to fight these cases, larger in number than last year, citizens too should be alert! Next time you feel sick, get your blood test and platelet count checked (IgM). You might be confusing the symptoms of dengue fever with the “common cold”.

Beware of late night weather conditions while driving in the northwestern plains

New Delhi, Driving through the winter nights is always a challenge for people. The unfortunate demise of the famous actor and comedian Jaspal Bhatti in a road accident in Jalandhar at 2:38 am today is yet another eye opener and reminder that the approaching winters could be very dangerous because with it, begin nights of zero visibilities and dense fog. To make it worse, most of the driver remains oblivious of the severe weather conditions.

Drivers usually do not adapt to the weather conditions even if visibilities start to reduce. Cool and dry sleepy winds could make the driver lose their concentration and take a short nap especially while driving during the late night hours. This happens when they get relaxed. They become complacent, try to maintain a particular speed and do not bother to apply the brakes or shift the gear.

This is what happened in Jaspal Bhatti’s case. It therefore teaches us a lesson, to remain aware about the weather changes taking place in and around your city. It is advisable for travelers to remain vigilant and follow weather updates especially while driving at night.

Subdued rain over Tamil Nadu & coastal AP; fall in temperatures continue over Northern India

New Delhi, Rains are likely to get subdued along the eastern coast during the next 24 to 48 hours but they would continue with the same intensity on the extreme southwest Peninsular coast and over the Lakshadweep Islands during this period. A low pressure area is about to get formed over the south Andaman Sea. Temperatures are expected to fall further over Northern India during the next 24 to 48 hours.

A low pressure area in the south Andaman Sea has started to show its impact as the northeast monsoon rains has dried up along the eastern Peninsular coast. The low pressure area is pulling the moist northeasterly winds towards its center. On one hand this pull is affecting the wind pattern along the east coast for and on the other hand, it is helping the low pressure area to intensify further.

Rain therefore is likely to reduce over coastal Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh during the next 24 to 48 hours. But extreme southwestern Peninsula regions of Kerala and Lakshadweep Islands would be receiving rains at many places. One or two places could even get heavy rain. South and north interior Karnataka, some parts of Goa, south Madhya Maharashtra and Rayalaseema would also receive rain at a few places during the next 24 hours.

The depression in the southeast Arabian Sea has formed as a cyclonic circulation called Murjan. This is expected to reach the Somalia Peninsula where it could be destructive as it could bring heavy rain over the east African Peninsula during the next 24 hours. The system is far from the Indian coast and would not impact much.

The western disturbance over east Jammu & Kashmir has moved away in the east and would have less impact on the weather conditions (rain and snow) over the northwestern hills and plains. The remnants of the Western Disturbance may give showers at one or two places over Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in the next 24 hours.

The easterly winds are colliding with the northerly winds over Central India. This collision might create thundery conditions at one or two places over Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, with few drops of rain in the next 24 hours.

Hurricane Sandy likely to affect southeast US

New Delhi, Category 2 Hurricane Sandy has the potential to bring significant impact to the eastern coast of the U.S., through the weekend and early into next week. The Wind gusts could reach 65 to 80 kmph along Florida's eastern coast later Thursday going into Friday.
The pressure gradient between Sandy and high pressure in the northeast U.S. will lead to increasingly strong winds over the Florida Peninsula, spreading northwards to the outer banks of North Carolina and Virginia Beach through at least Saturday.
Rip currents, high surf, and eventually, some coastal flooding are possible in areas of the most persistent onshore flow. Bands of rain on the outer periphery of the circulation will occasionally wrap into the coast as well.
Sandy is expected to track from eastern Cuba to the Bahamas from Thursday through Friday, other than potential hurricane-force winds in Jamaica, eastern Cuba and the Bahamas as the center passes through these locations, the hurricane can bring heavy rain, flash flooding, and mudslides in the north and east of the center's track.

Rain brings charm to Shevaroy hill falls

New Delhi, With clouded sky, piercing chillness in the air and fullness in the falls, Yercaud hill station in Shevaroys hills in Tamil Nadu is ready to attract more tourists from the nearby areas. It is said to be the start of second tourist season for the hill station as the constant drizzles have improved the weather conditions in town.

Northeast monsoon rains have fed the falls of Shevaroys hills and it is the only this season that these fall showcase spectacular views. The residents are hopeful that despite rain visitors would come to witness these beautiful falls.

The tension between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka on the issue of Cauvery Water sharing could impact the visitors number from neighbouring districts but they are expected to increase due to Dussehra holidays as the thrill of witnessing one of the best fall view in India under the rain can not be replicated anywhere especially during this season.

 

Perfect weather likely during F1 race at BIC

New Delhi, The weather would turn perfect for the second ever race at the Buddh International Circuit this weekend. That would be a good news for the world F1 teams, drivers, organisers and off course for the spectators who are eager to see the race both on Saturday and Sunday.

The race will be held under the open sky with bright sunshine and gentle breeze blowing at the speed of around 5-10kms. The temperatures are likely to remain comfortable as the maximum is expected to be around 30 °C while the minimum would be around 15 °C. The humidity level would around 80 percent in the morning hours and would be close to 30 percent at the time of the race.

During the afternoon session when F1 teams would be lining up for the race, the spectators might experience a little warmness but there is nothing to be worried as the cool and dry northwesterly winds would soothe them while watching nerve-wracking race on one of the fastest F1 track in the world.







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