Friday, March 31, 2017

still very warm as march departs... (pm.31.mar.17)>

Friday's stats:

Low temp: 63.5F (17.5C)
High temp: 78.7F (25.9C)
Rainfall: none

There has now been no measurable rainfall in McLeod Ganj in two full weeks, and it's the tenth day in a row in which temperatures have reached or exceeded 70ºF/21ºC.  This latter part of March has certainly gone a long way in redeeming the horrendous weather we struggled though earlier in the month.  Sunshine was a bit more plentiful today than expected, aiding the thermometer to rise higher than it has all throughout this recent stretch of unseasonably warm weather.  Isolated thundershower activity did try to get going this afternoon, but all of that weak/feeble action remained well north of us.

Changes are going to be rather slow and incremental during the coming three or four days, as the high pressure ridge responsible for our recent great weather breaks down.  As cooler air gradually filters in aloft, the atmosphere will get a bit more unstable, so we have to be aware of a 30-40% chance of passing thundershowers between now and Monday.  We'll see fluctuations between clouds and sun as well, with a bit of a downward trend in temps.

The main focus remains on a developing storm system during the mid-week period that is still looking kind of frightening.  A leftover batch of much cooler late winter air will try to invade Himalayan north India, mixing with this warm and more moist air mass in the surface layers -- stirring up widespread rain and thunderstorms between Tuesday and late Thursday night.  According to the latest data, Wednesday evening through Thursday evening should be the roughest period, but that timing could shift a bit in either direction, so stay tuned for daily updates.  In addition to the rain, thunder and gusty winds, temperatures will temporarily plunge well below normal for early April.