Weather Update: Weather Forecast: Due to Western Disturbance, people are troubled in the hilly areas as well as in the plains. There has been a lot of snowfall in the hilly areas in the first three days of March.
Trouble increased due to snowfall in hilly areas, Meteorologists say that the current Western Disturbance (WD) is the strongest this season. After this, a second disturbance will come, which may start affecting the Western Himalayan region on the night of March 5 and the rains may continue in this region till March.
Director General of India Meteorological Department (IMD) M Mahapatra said that this is the same western disturbance which caused heavy snowfall in Pakistan and caused loss of life. This may cause loss in Afghanistan also. This was the fastest western disturbance of this season.
On the other hand, there have been many casualties due to rain in the plains due to snowfall. The maximum temperature in the plains including Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) has dropped by several degrees.
Four people have been reported dead due to lightning at different places in Uttar Pradesh. There has been rain along with lightning in some parts of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Almost ready crops are being damaged in Punjab and Haryana due to rain and hailstorm.
According to the forecast of India Meteorological Department (IMD), heavy rain or snowfall is likely to continue in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand and moderate storm or hailstorm in East Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Sikkim.
An avalanche occurred in a village in Himachal Pradesh’s Lahaul and Spiti district in the early hours of Sunday (March 3), disrupting the flow of Chenab and triggering an alert in the surrounding areas. More than 500 roads, including five national highways, were closed due to avalanches and landslides.
Many roads have come to a standstill due to snow in Jammu and Kashmir. Vehicles are stuck on the road. NHAI officials have intensified efforts to resume traffic movement on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway after the improvement in the weather.
The 270-km long highway, the only all-weather link connecting Kashmir with the rest of the country, remained closed for the second day. Police evacuated a large number of stranded passengers, including more than 200 tourists, to safe places in Ramban district.
If we talk about the biggest problem, it happened in Himachal Pradesh. The avalanche that occurred here on Sunday disrupted life. At the same time, there was heavy snowfall at many places in Jammu and Kashmir and people were troubled.
Rain has also become a disaster in the neighboring country Pakistan. At least 37 people have died while 50 people are injured due to heavy rains across Pakistan. Many houses have collapsed. Landslides have occurred in many areas due to which roads have also been disrupted.
Now Understand, Why is there snow on the mountains and hail in the plains, What is the reason?
The presence of snow on mountains and hail in plains is primarily due to differences in elevation and atmospheric conditions.
- Snow on Mountains:
- Elevation and Temperature Gradient: Mountains are generally much higher in elevation than surrounding plains. As altitude increases, the air temperature tends to decrease at a certain rate, known as the lapse rate. This means that mountain peaks are colder than the lower-lying plains.
- Orographic Lift: When moist air from the plains is forced to rise over a mountain range, it undergoes adiabatic cooling. As the air rises, it expands and cools, leading to the condensation of water vapor into clouds and eventually precipitation. This process, known as orographic lift, is a common mechanism for the formation of snow on mountains.
- Hail in Plains:
- Thunderstorm Formation: Hail is typically associated with severe thunderstorms, which are characterized by strong updrafts and downdrafts. These thunderstorms often develop in warm, moist air masses.
- Updrafts and Hail Formation: Within a thunderstorm, strong updrafts can carry raindrops high into the atmosphere, where temperatures are below freezing. These supercooled water droplets freeze upon contact with condensation nuclei, such as dust or ice particles. As the hailstone is carried by the updraft, it can collide with other supercooled water droplets, leading to further growth of the hailstone.
- Downdrafts and Hailfall: Eventually, the hailstone becomes too heavy for the updrafts to support, and it falls to the ground as hail. The size of hailstones can vary depending on the strength of the updrafts and the amount of time the hailstone spends in the storm cloud.
In summary, the presence of snow on mountains and hail in plains is a result of the complex interplay between atmospheric conditions, including temperature, moisture, and air movements, in different geographical regions.
