Why do Andhra Pradesh and Telangana get so hot during the summer?

Situated on the eastern side of the Deccan plateau in southern India, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana fall on the list of Indian States which are most prone to heatwaves during the summer.

On May 12, 17 districts of Andhra Pradesh recorded temperature above 41º C, with the A.P. State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) saying heatwave-like conditions are set to prevail in the northern districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Paravathipuram-Manyam and East Godavari, and Kakinada.

Mercury levels surged past the 40º C mark across all 33 districts of Telangana on April 21. Adilabad was the hottest with a maximum temperature of 44º C, according to data from the Telangana Development Planning Society.

Situated on the eastern side of the Deccan plateau in South India, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana feature regularly on the list of Indian States most prone to heatwaves during the summer.

Both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana experience very hot summers due to a mix of geographical and climatic reasons.

First up: the geographical location of the States.

Latitudinally, both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana fall under the Tropic of Cancer. This puts the States in the Torrid (or tropical) Zone – a region characterised by its hot and humid weather. “Both AP and Telangana are near the Tropic of Cancer, therefore the sun is vertically above these States during summer months, leading to increased solar radiation and heating,” Mahesh Palawat, Vice president Meteorology and climate Change at Skymet, told The Hindu.

Telangana experiences an additional layer of continental climate too. Telangana is a landlocked State, with no major water bodies nearby to moderate temperatures. As a result, it experiences a continental climate, where temperatures can rise sharply during the day. This is also true for interior districts of Andhra Pradesh, which are far from the sea.