🔴 Unprecedented May Rainfall in Pune & Mumbai – What Went Wrong with the Forecast? 🌧️🌆 May 2025 has stunned Maharashtra. Pune and Mumbai witnessed record-breaking rainfall, causing urban flooding, traffic collapse, and power outages — all in a month that's typically dry. What’s shocking? Despite advanced satellite systems, Doppler radars, and AI models, the scale and intensity weren’t predicted accurately. 🔍 So, what caused this extreme event? 1️⃣ Supercharged Pre-Monsoon Storms Unusual heat over land and extra moisture from the Arabian Sea led to explosive convective activity — like mini cloudbursts — dumping intense rain in a matter of hours. 2️⃣ Climatic Tug-of-War A western disturbance collided with a low-pressure trough over Maharashtra. This rare May interaction intensified storms — not picked up early by models. 3️⃣ The Urban Heat Island Effect Mumbai and Pune’s concrete jungle trapped heat, triggering stronger vertical air movement, further amplifying cloud development over cities. 4️⃣ Climate Change Fingerprints Warming oceans and chaotic jet stream behavior are turning traditional weather wisdom upside down. Events that were once “freak” are now becoming “frequent.” 🌐 Why the Forecast Fell Short Even today, real-time forecasting of such storms is difficult because: Convective systems evolve within 1-2 hours over 1–3 km areas. Many models still use coarser resolutions (≥4 km) — too large to detect localized urban events. Urban meteorological sensors are limited or poorly networked. 🚨 Fact: Pune received over 300% of its monthly May rainfall in just 24 hours, overwhelming stormwater systems not designed for such intensity. ✅ The Way Forward Integrate IoT-based rainfall sensors and high-resolution urban radar grids. Use AI-powered nowcasting and real-time hydrological simulations for cities. Include urban microclimate forecasting in disaster preparedness. Let’s rethink how we design, monitor, and forecast for cities facing climate extremes. Because the next cloudburst might be minutes away, not days. #watermanagement #urbanflooding #climatechange #smartcities #waterwastewaterengineering #rainfall #weatherforecasting #punerain #mumbairain #stormwatermanagement #digitaltwins #aiinweather #urbanresilience #premonsoonstorms Explore all our platforms and be part of the journey: https://linktr.ee/watergr