India sees hottest, driest August since records began -The Asian Age
India has reported its hottest and
driest August since national records began more than a century ago, the
latest in a string of records broken worldwide as climate change intensifies.
August falls in the middle of India's annual monsoon, a season that usually
brings up to 80 percent of the country's yearly rainfall.
Heavy downpours brought deadly floods to parts of India's north during the
month, but on the whole, rains were much more subdued, resulting in record
heat.
"Average mean and maximum temperatures in August 2023 were the record highest
since 1901," the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
"The large rainfall deficiency and weak monsoon condition is the main
reason."
IMD data showed August average rainfall of 161.7 millimetres (6.4 inches)
this year, 30.1mm lower than the previous August record in 2005.
With millions of farmers dependent on monsoons for their crops, summer rains
are vital for India's food security and the livelihood of its rural
workforce.
The monsoon occurs when summer heat warms the landmass of the subcontinent,
causing the air to rise and sucking in cooler Indian Ocean winds, which then
produce enormous volumes of rain.
But it also brings destruction every year in the form of landslides and
floods. Melting glaciers add to the volume of water while unregulated
construction in flood-prone areas exacerbates the damage.
Despite the record-low rainfall, at least 65 people were killed in August by
flood waters and landslides triggered by heavy downpours around India's
Himalayas.
India's weather department has declared a heatwave almost every year in the
last decade, with temperatures sometimes touching 50 degrees Celsius (122
degrees Fahrenheit).
Worldwide, temperature records have tumbled in recent years, as climate
change makes meteorological conditions more volatile.
July 2023, marked by heatwaves and fires around the world, was the hottest
month ever registered on Earth, according to the European Union's climate
observatory Copernicus.
Emissions of greenhouse gases are enabling increasingly intense and long-
lasting heatwaves.