Front Page

Cloudy skies for the next two days

Bangalore: It is hard to believe that there could be such different figures in rainfall in a single city. But such is the variation of weather in Bangalore. While the city recorded 18 mm of rainfall, the airport recorded 59 mm and Yelahanka a whopping 114 mm — in just 24 hours between Wednesday and Thursday morning.

The city’s topography can explain much of this climatic inconsistency, said Ravi Nanjundiah, Associate Professor, Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science. “Yelahanka, for instance, is close to Nandi Hills and that can act as an elevated hotspot, pushing up moist air and causing rain.” Even during the monsoon, there had been as much as 30 to 40 per cent difference in rainfall between the airport and the city, he added.

Bangaloreans will be forgiven for being unprepared for these rains — the “normal” rainfall for the entire month of March is no more than 4.4 mm, according to the Met Department — but we have crossed that mark several times over already.

Bangalore can expect cloudy skies and rain in the evening in the next 48 hours.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu