Study Reveals Rapid Transition from Winter to Summer-Like Conditions in North India
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 19th March. An in-depth analysis of temperature data spanning over five decades has unveiled a concerning trend in North India, indicating a swift shift from winter to summer-like conditions, effectively curtailing the spring season. Researchers from Climate Central, an independent group of scientists based in the US, conducted this study to assess the impact of global warming on India, with a specific focus on the winter months of December to February.
The findings of the analysis highlighted significant fluctuations in temperatures during late winter across North India. While January witnessed either a cooling trend or slight warming, February experienced a pronounced increase in temperatures. This abrupt transition from cool winter temperatures to warmer conditions typically associated with March underscores the changing climate patterns in the region.
The researchers quantified this shift by calculating the difference in warming rates between January and February, indicating the change in average temperature since 1970. Rajasthan emerged as one of the most affected states, with February temperatures soaring 2.6 degrees Celsius higher than January. A total of nine states and Union territories, including Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttarakhand, exhibited a January-February temperature difference exceeding 2 degrees Celsius.
These findings corroborate reports of the dwindling spring season in various parts of India. Moreover, the analysis indicated a general warming trend during winter across the country, with Manipur experiencing the most significant change in average winter temperature since 1970 (2.3 degrees Celsius), while Delhi recorded the smallest change (0.2 degrees Celsius).
Andrew Pershing, VP for Science at Climate Central, emphasized the potential consequences of this rapid transition, stating, “The cooling in the central and northern Indian states during January followed by very strong warming in February creates the potential for a quick jump from winter to spring-like conditions.”
Against the backdrop of rising global temperatures, driven primarily by CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion since the Industrial Revolution, urgent action is imperative to mitigate climate change. Scientists have stressed the need to slash CO2 emissions by 43 percent by 2030 to limit the average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a crucial threshold to avert worsening climate impacts. Failure to act decisively could lead to a trajectory of around 3 degrees Celsius temperature rise by the end of the century, exacerbating the severity of climate-related challenges.
