Heat alert: Mumbai’s temperatures to rise by 2-3°C next week

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Mumbai is experiencing a warm and sunny week, with meteorologists predicting even warmer conditions ahead for the city and parts of Maharashtra. On Thursday, the Santacruz observatory recorded a maximum temperature of 36°C, while the Colaba observatory noted a high of 32.2°C.

According to the India Meteorological Department's (IMD) Regional Meteorological Centre in Mumbai, maximum temperatures are expected to rise by 2-3°C over the next week. However, a slight drop is anticipated around February 18, before temperatures climb again the following week.

Sunil Kamble, head of the centre, stated, "The temperature is expected to rise by at least 2-3°C in the next week. However, there will be a drop in the maximum temperature from February 18 before rising again the week after that."

Independent weather enthusiast Rushikesh Agre - Mumbai Rains on social media - noted that the IMD has predicted a hotter February. He observed that, so far, February has been pleasant, but temperatures are expected to rise starting this weekend. Agre mentioned that next week could see temperatures reaching 40°C in some interior areas of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), with Mumbai itself experiencing temperatures around 34-36°C.

Climatologist Rajesh Kapadia of the private weather blog ‘Vagaries of Weather' explained that by the weekend, Mumbai's temperatures could hover around 36-37°C, with the MMR experiencing highs of 38-39°C. Kapadia attributed this unusual warmth to the absence of western disturbances in the north, which usually bring cool northerly winds to Mumbai during this period.