On December 24, the minimum in Mumbai dropped down to 11.4°C, which was way below the normal range. Winter chill was felt for a brief period, which is a rare phenomenon for Mumbai where temperatures remain on the higher side even during winters.
Usually, during the winter season, the minimum temperatures do not fall below 15°C. But, this year the minimums remained well below 15 degrees on two occasions. Also, the minimums hovered around 15 degrees till January 6.
However, now the winds have changed their direction and temperatures have started to increase. On January 7, Santa Cruz recorded 19°C as its minimum temperature, which is two degrees above the normal range. Now, minimums will remain close to the normal levels, and maximums will be slightly above normal.
Similarly, during the last week of December, most of Madhya Maharashtra including Pune, Solapur, Satara, Sangli and Aurangabad were observing below average temperatures. The reason for this drop in temperatures can be attributed to the cold northeasterly winds reaching up to Madhya Maharashtra across Rajasthan.
However, soon after an anticyclone developed over Rajasthan, which obstructed the flow of the northeasterly winds, temperatures once again rose over the Madhya Maharashtra region. Thus, it is safe to say that the winter episode for Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra is finally coming to an end.
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