Himachal Met Stations Record 6 Year high January Temperatures

By: Ravinder Makhaik

Shimla: It’s been the hottest January in Shimla in six years as the weatherman reported the mean temperature of the month at 15.4 degree Celsius, 3.8 degrees above normal and the mean low temperature at 5.2 degree Celsius, 1.9 degrees above normal.

Holding out a forecast of mainly dry weather over the next four days across low lying and middle hills and rain or snow at isolated places in higher hills, Himachal meteorological director Manmohan Singh disclosed that between 2005 and 2010, the mean high temperature for January in Shimla was 10.3 in 2005, 13.1 in 2006, 13.5 in 2007, 9.4 in 2008 and 14.4 Celsius in 2009.

Likewise the mean months low was 2.1 in 2005, 5 in 2006, 3.5 in2007, 1.5 in 2008 and 5.8 Celsius in 2009. The long term normal mean high and low temperatures for January are 11.6 and 3.3 degree Celsius, he said.

Besides the departure from normal mean temperatures for January, the city also received below normal rain or snow. The city’s met gauges recorded 25.1 mm of water against a normal of 54.5 mm he added. In fact in the last 6 years Shimla has recorded below normal rain and snow in 2009 also and none at all in 2007, said the weather man.

At other weather stations in Sundernagar in Mandi district the mean high for the month was 21.3 degrees against a normal of 17.6 degree Celsius whereas the low was 2.2 degrees against a low of 3 degree Celsius.

In Kullu valley against a normal mean high of 15.6 degrees Bhuntar the station recorded the months mean at 18.9 degrees. In high altitude region of Kinnaur the months mean high was 7.1 degree against a normal mean of 6.2 degree Celsius and at Dharamshala in Kangra valley the months mean high was 19.4 degrees Celsius against a normal mean 16.2 degrees, he said. Rain or snow was also lower than normal in all these stations he added.

Year	Shimla			Sundernagar			Bhuntar			Kalpa			Dharamshala
	MaxTemp	MinTemp	R/F(mm)	MaxTemp	MinTemp	R/F(mm)	MaxTemp	MinTemp	R/F(mm)	MaxTemp	MinTemp	R/F(mm)	MaxTemp	MinTemp	R/F(mm)
2010	15.4	5.2	25.1	21.3	2.2	10.3	18.9	1.5	13.8	7.1	-4.4	50.2	19.4	4.4	30.2
2009	14.4	5.8	17.8	20.1	5.5	21.5	18.1	4.0	25.3	7.3	-2.9	54.8	17.8	6.1	50.2
2008	9.4	1.5	80.0	15.0	3.0	82.4	13.5	1.9	197.1	2.0	-5.1	181.8	13.6	6.9	80.6
2007	13.5	3.5	0.0	20.5	1.0	0.0	19.3	0.2	0.0	10.1	-4.3	0.0	17.0	5.3	0.0
2006	13.1	5.0	73.3	18.6	4.3	56.4	16.1	2.9	153.0	5.0	-4.0	149.0	16.5	7.0	33.2
2005	10.3	2.1	102.8	17.3	3.4	65.0	15.0	2.3	78.5	1.9	-5.9	142.8	15.2	4.5	35.8
Normal	11.6	3.3	54.5	17.6	3.0	32.3	15.6	1.6	91.3	6.2	-3.9	98.8	16.2	5.8	81.1