Dense fog enveloped parts of Delhi as the air quality inched closer to the ‘severe’ category on Friday morning. The air quality index (AQI) was 380 (very poor) at 9am, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert at 8:20am on Friday, citing dense fog conditions across the city for the next two hours, with visibility dropping to below 50m.
The minimum temperature for the day remained unchanged and was logged at 9°C.
The city’s 24-hour average AQI was recorded at 373 (very poor) at 4pm on Thursday.
December has already seen three ‘severe’ air days between December 13-15.
While the air quality slightly improved over the last few days, owing to an increase in the wind speed; forecasts by the Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) for Delhi suggest that the AQI is expected to deteriorate to ‘severe’ by the end of the week.
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“The air quality is likely to be in the very poor category from Friday to Saturday. The air quality is likely to be in the severe category on Sunday. The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the severe to very poor category,” the AQEWS bulletin said.
Meanwhile, according to data from IMD, visibility over Palam dropped to 50m at 2:30am, with westerlies of speed 4-6 mph influencing the region. Around 5:30am, zero visibility was recorded at Safdarjung, while visibility over Palam remained 50m.
IMD classifies it as a shallow fog when visibility is between 500m and 1000m, moderate when it is between 200m and 500m, dense fog when visibility ranges from 50m to 200m, and very dense fog when visibility falls below 50m.
According to data from Flightradar24, the airport continued to experience disruptions, with an average delay of 25 minutes per flight on Friday morning, owing to fog.