The hottest and driest August on record for India, according to government statistics going back more than a century, is the latest in a run of records being broken throughout the world as climate change worsens.
August occurs in the midst of India’s annual monsoon season, which often contributes up to 80% of the nation’s annual rainfall.
Although there were some disastrous floods in the north of India during the month due to heavy rains, overall there was substantially less rain, which led to a record amount of 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.”
According to IMD data, August rainfall this year averaged 161.7 millimeters (6.4 inches), which was 30.1 millimeters less than the previous August record set in 2005.
Summer rains are essential for India’s food security and the livelihood of its rural workforce since millions of farmers depend on the monsoon for their crops.
The monsoon happens when the subcontinent’s landmass warms in the summer, lifting the air and drawing in cooler winds from the Indian Ocean. This causes massive amounts of rain to fall.
However, it also brings yearly devastation in the form of floods and landslides. Glacier melt increases the amount of water, and unchecked development in flood-prone areas exacerbates the harm.
Despite the record-low rainfall, landslides and flood waters in the vicinity of the Indian Himalayas killed at least 65 people in August.
In the past ten years, India’s weather service has issued a heatwave declaration virtually every year, with occasional highs of 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).
Recent years have seen a worldwide decline in temperature records as a result of the erratic nature of the weather brought on by climate change.
According to the climate observatory of the European Union, Copernicus, July 2023 was the hottest month ever recorded on Earth, with heatwaves and flames all around the planet.
As a result of greenhouse gas emissions, heatwaves are becoming more intense and persistent.
