Mumbai records highest February temperature in western India, with a heatwave sweeping through coastal cities. (File Photo)The maximum day temperature recorded in Mumbai on February 25 and 26, when the city and its neighbouring districts reeled under a heatwave, was the highest in the entire western coast of India.On February 25, The India Meteorology Department’s (IMD) Santacruz observatory recorded a maximum day temperature of 38.7 degrees Celsius, which was the highest recorded in February since 2017, and on February 26, Mumbai’s day temperature stood at 38.5 degrees — second highest since 2017.Meanwhile, Dahanu in Palghar district on February 25 and 26 recorded 38.1 degrees and 38.2 degrees, followed by 37 and 37.3 degrees at the Ratnagiri district.In Goa, Panjim recorded 36.5 degrees and 37.6 degrees during these two days. Out of the three coastal cities in Karnataka, Karwar recorded the highest day temperature during these two days at 37.6 degrees and 38.4 degrees. While in Gujarat, Surat recorded 37.8 and 38.4 degrees during these two days.Meanwhile, weather experts have maintained that even though the heatwave-like situation is over, Mumbai will continue to experience hot and humid conditions for the next few days.“At present there is an intervention of easterly winds which is delaying the sea-breeze. The sea breeze usually sets in by 10-11 am in the morning but due to the easterly winds the setting is delayed by a couple of hours, which results in a rise in temperature during the day,” Sushma Nair scientist from IMD, Mumbai told the Indian Express.Experts have attributed the ongoing weather condition to be a result of the extremely rain deficit winter season.Story continues below this ad“The heatwave has arrived very early in the season. While the waxing and waning of rainfall during any particular season can be considered normal, we cannot rule out the role of climate change in the gradual rise in average temperatures over the years. It has been established that global warming has affected the winter rainfall in India. Summers have expanded and the winter season has downsized, with erratic rainfall patterns impacting temperature profiles across the country,” said Mahesh Palawat VP- Meteorology and Climate Change, Skymet Weather.Meanwhile, according to the Climate Shift Index (CSI) by US based weather agency Climate Central, the last three day temperatures (February 25-27) in Panaji, Goa were made at least 5 times more likely by human-caused climate change. Similarly, temperatures in Mumbai during the same time frame were at least three times more likely due to global warming.“Currently, warmer-than-usual temperatures are being observed across all continents, indicating a relatively uniform global warming pattern. Unless we limit global warming by rapidly cutting the emission of greenhouse gases, weather records will continue to break frequently,” said Dr. Akshay Deoras, Research Scientist, National Centre for Atmospheric Science and the Department of Meteorology, University of Reading, UK.© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd