Tuesday, October 4, 2016

the abnormality of it all... (pm.04.oct.16)>

Tuesday's stats:

Low temp: 62.4F (16.9C)
High temp: 71.6F (22.0C)
Rainfall: trace

Clouds and fog are still thick and heavy out there this evening as darkness descends, but we are ending the day without measurable rainfall, at least here in the local area.  Once again there was a very nice amount of sunshine to start the day, in spite of the haze, but clouds and fog literally exploded all around us between 11:00am and noon, and remained in control for the rest of the day.  There were a few sprinkles of rain from just before 4:00pm until recently, along with some rumbles of thunder to the east-northeast, also during the late afternoon.  Humidity dropped as low as 72% during the mid-morning, but then settled into the 80-85% range thereafter.

This horrendously moisture-laden air mass is way out of the ordinary for early October, and not at all enjoyable for those who have been here all throughout the monsoon season.  Enough already!  It is not unusual for the last dregs of post-monsoon tropical moisture to linger even until the middle of October, but what we've been dealing with is much more significant than that.  Humidity readings that fail to drop below 70% day after day after day by this time of year -- that is not something I remember seeing during my years here -- and local climatological data confirms that this is highly abnormal.

There remains a shimmering light further along the tunnel, in the form of a rather significant pattern shift by early next week.  The mid- and upper-level flow will strengthen, from the west-northwest, driving some significantly drier air into northwest India, and eventually, even into central parts of the country.  This gives us some hope for a more substantial drop in humidity next week, along with only the slightest risk of some mainly PM shower activity.  Follow along as we wait to see if theory translates into reality.

MONSOON 2016 info and THE 7-DAY OUTLOOK are available on tabs above.