inevitable components... (pm.27.jul.12)>

It is mostly cloudy and foggy this evening, but there have been some brief glimpses of sun as well.  Random showers have been moving in and out of the area since about 3:30pm, but so far, they have been generally light and short-lived.  I'll be back with a rain gauge report later this evening, but up until 5:00pm, there had been nothing measurable (*Update @ 750pm... just 0.10"/3mm of rain for the day thus far).  The high temp at my place just below the mountaineering center on Tushita Road reached 75.7F (24.3C), thanks to the few appearances of sunshine today.

We're awaiting our next episode of significant rainfall, which will inevitably materialize.  As I mentioned this morning, there has been some drier air which has seeped into parts of the middle and upper-atmosphere, reducing the overall moisture content of our very tropical air mass.  This slightly drier air will hold on until perhaps mid-day Sunday, and should provide us with a bit of sunshine/stars here and there, and prevent the clouds and thick fog from completely taking over.  There are still going to be periods of rain and possibly some thunder, with the ever-present risk of heavy downpours developing both day and night.

It looks like 100% saturation will return to all layers of the atmosphere by the latter part of the weekend, which will increase the prevalence of fog while also giving us a better chance of some longer-lasting spells of moderate to heavy rain.  It's looking especially wet from Sunday evening through Tuesday, when we'll get an opportunity to add several inches of rain to our July total before the month is out...

FRIDAY NIGHT:

clouds and fog, along with a few glimpses of moon and stars.  another round or two of showers likely.  some thunder possible as well.

low: 19C (67F)

SATURDAY:

a period or two of sun in the midst of clouds and occasional fog.  a couple of showers/thundershowers likely.

high: 24C (75F)

SATURDAY NIGHT:

partly to mostly cloudy with some fog at times.  good chance of a couple of showers/thundershowers.

low: 20C (68F)

SUNDAY:

some morning sun?  otherwise mostly cloudy and foggy with periods of rain and thunder likely.

high: 23C (73F)

MONDAY:

mostly cloudy and foggy.  periods of rain and thunder.

morning low: 19C (67F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)

TUESDAY:

clouds, fog, occasional rain and some thunder.

morning low: 19C (66F)

datyime high: 22C (72F)

WEDNESDAY:

clouds, fog and some sun at times.  a couple of periods of rain/thunder likely.

morning low: 18C (65F)

daytime high: 23C (73F)

some bright moments... (am.27.jul.12)>

The sun is visible as it rises over the Dhauladars early on this Friday morning -- for the first time (at sunrise) since last weekend.  There was heavy dew this morning though, which is indicative of humidity which remains close to 100%.  I recorded no additional rainfall overnight, and the low temperature has been 66.0F (18.9C).

This morning's sunshine probably won't last for long, due to the great amount of moisture in the air which should quickly condense out into clouds and fog.  Our winds aloft have turned back to the west, for the most part, and that has allowed the return of some drier air in the mid- and upper-levels of the atmosphere.  This situation should continue through Saturday, which may provide us with a few sunny breaks, and keep us from spending as much time at or near the point of full saturation, as we've experienced most of the time since last Sunday afternoon.  Despite that, there is still a very good chance of shower and thundershower development at any time, so keep the umbrella handy.

The super-juicy, deep tropical moisture will reclaim its territory by Sunday, and that will lead to our next rather strong phase of monsoon conditions for at least the first half of next week.  I think it's likely that we'll pick up another 6-8" (15-20cm) of rain by the end of the month -- that would land us near 30" (76cm), which is still only about 75% of normal for July.

FRIDAY:

early sunshine giving way to mostly cloudy skies and some fog at times.  a couple of showers or thundershowers likely.

high: 23C (74F)

FRIDAY NIGHT:

partly cloudy with occasional fog.  good chance of a round of thundershowers.

low: 19C (67F)

SATURDAY:

a mix of sun, clouds and occasional fog.  a period of showers and thunder likely at some point during the day.

high: 24C (75F)

SUNDAY:

some early sun possible, otherwise mostly cloudy and foggy at times.  a round or two of showers and thundershowers likely.

morning low: 19C (67F)

daytime high: 23C (73F)

MONDAY:

mostly cloudy and foggy.  periods of rain and thunder likely.

morning low: 19C (66F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)

TUESDAY:

mostly cloudy with periods of fog, rain and some thunder.

morning low: 18C (65F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)

lush and green... (pm.26.jul.12)>

It is mostly cloudy this evening with some patches of fog, but also some breaks in the overcast, allowing a glimpse or two of sun.  I've recorded a total of 3.31" (8.4cm) of rain today since midnight, but by far, the heaviest occurred between about 6:45am and 9:45am, when 3.11" (7.9cm) of that total fell.  It was the heaviest rainfall in such a short period of time (just 3 hours) of this monsoon season.  We did manage to get a couple of hours of sunshine right in the middle of the day, however, which allowed my high temp to hit 73.9F (23.3C) in the upper part of town.

This morning's torrential rainfall brings us up to 23.60" (59.9cm) for the month of July, which is a bit more respectable.  We're still about 16" (40.6cm) short of the normal total for July, but with more than six days to go, and a fairly active monsoon pattern in place, it's not impossible for us to draw close.  There has been some slightly drier air being pulled in from the west in the wake of our rainstorm last night and this morning, but not enough to cut off the fetch of tropical moisture and significantly diminish rain chances.  It's likely that a few drier periods and peeks of sun will appear both Friday and Saturday, but the risk of a moderate to heavy downpour of rain will never be too far away.

According to the computer models, late Sunday into Tuesday could be the next phase of very saturated conditions and long-lasting rains -- which would be just in time to boost our final rainfall totals for the month.

THURSDAY NIGHT:

partly to mostly cloudy with fog at times.  good chance of another period or two of rain and thunder developing.

low: 19C (67F)

FRIDAY:

clouds, fog, and a bit of sun at times.  some rain likely, along with possible thunder.

high: 23C (74F)

FRIDAY NIGHT:

partly to mostly cloudy with some fog at times.  a couple of showers/thundershowers in the area.

low: 19C (67F)

SATURDAY:

 a period or two of sun... otherwise mostly cloudy with some fog.  a couple of showers/thundershowers likely.

high: 24C (75F)

SUNDAY:

mostly cloudy with occasional fog, rain and some thunder likely.

morning low: 19C (67F)

daytime high: 23C (73F)

MONDAY:

clouds, fog, rain and some thunder likely.

morning low: 19C (66F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)

TUESDAY:

mostly cloudy with periods of fog, rain and some thunder.

morning low: 19C (66F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)

torrential rains... (am.26.jul.12)>

Yesterday's high temp: 73.0F (22.8C)
This morning's low temp: 66.7F (19.3C)
Rainfall since 10pm last night: 0.63" (8mm)
Rainfall in past 24 hours: 0.82" (1.2cm)

As you can see, rainfall amounts have not been heavy up to now, although it has been raining off and on since last evening.  We also had quite a thunder and lightning show last night, but not a lot of rain to go with it.  Heavier rain has kicked in at the time of this posting (7am), and there are numerous areas of rain and a few thundershowers drifting through north India -- so amounts will be adding up.

*Update @ 9:52am... Now 3.02" (7.7cm) in just over 3 hours.  Light to moderate rain in progress.

*Update @ 8:50am... 2.72" (6.9cm) of rain since 6:45am.  2.92" (7.4cm) since midnight.  Rain has stopped for the moment, but redevelopment could occur at any time, from the way the satellite pics are looking.

*Update @ 8:07am... 2.5" (6.4cm) since 6:45am!!  Definitely the most intense/torrential downpour of the season... and still raining quite heavily.

*Update @ 740am... Just in the half hour that i was composing this morning's post, much steadier, heavier rain has set in.  Since 6:45am, I have exactly one inch (2.5cm) in my rain gauge, and still pouring.


If we are fortunate, we may see some breaks in the clouds during the coming few days, allowing some sun to peek through -- otherwise, it looks like classic mid-monsoon conditions are here to stay.  Expect a predominance of clouds, fog, and occasional periods of rain and thunder right through the forecast period.

I'll do my best to keep rainfall totals updated here, and on the JULY RAINFALL tab at the top of the page.

THURSDAY:

mostly cloudy and foggy.  occasional rain and some thunder... VERY HEAVY RAIN this morning.

high: 22C (72F)

THURSDAY NIGHT:

partly to mostly cloudy with fog at times.  more periods of rain and thunder likely.

low: 19C (66F)

FRIDAY:

some peeks of sun?  otherwise mostly cloudy and foggy at times.  another round or two of rain and thunder likely.

high: 23C (74F)

SATURDAY:

clouds, fog, and perhaps a period of sunshine.  a couple of periods of rain/thunder likely.

morning low: 19C (66F)

daytime high: 23C (74F)

SUNDAY:

mostly cloudy and foggy.  periods of rain and some thunder likely.

morning low: 19C (66F)

daytime high: 23C (73F)

MONDAY:

clouds and fog, along with periods of rain and thunder.

morning low: 18C (65F)

daytime high: 22C (72F)