Delhi sizzles: One station records 52.9°C, Met dept says checking data and sensors

THE MUNGESHPUR weather station in Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 52.9 degree Celsius on Wednesday, an all-time record for any location in India, prompting the Met office to rush its scientists to check the authenticity of the reading.

The Safdarjung weather observatory, which serves as the marker for the entire city, registered a maximum temperature of 46.8 degree Celsius on Wednesday, the highest in 80 years. It was six degrees higher than the normal expected at this time of the year, and the highest that the station has recorded since 1944. But it was substantially lower than the temperature at Mungeshpur, located on the northern outskirts of Delhi, bordering Haryana.

“The maximum temperature over Delhi NCR varied from 45.2 degree Celsius to 49.1 degree Celsius in different parts of the city. Mungeshpur reported 52.9 degree Celsius as an outlier compared to other stations. It could be due to an error in the sensor of local factors. IMD is examining the data and sensors,” the India Meteorological Department said in a statement.

This is not a story denying the heatwave in Delhi but rather about how one particular station for measuring temperatures may have been a bit off... Or maybe not.

After all, other palces were getting it right:

Najafgarh station recorded 49.1 degree Celsius, the highest for any Delhi observatory on Wednesday, while Pusa Road recorded 49 degree Celsius.