Rain building up: Satellite captures monsoon clouds rolling into India

Key points

• As millions wait for the arrival of the southwest monsoon, the latest satellite images from space are showing encouraging signs that rain-bearing clouds are finally beginning to gather strength over India.
• Fresh imagery from the INSAT-3DS weather satellite on Wednesday revealed expanding cloud cover across large parts of the country, from the Himalayas to the southern peninsula, highlighting an increasingly active atmosphere as the monsoon inches closer.
• One of the most noticeable features in the image is a vast swath of cloud stretching across northern India and adjoining Pakistan.
• Dense thunderstorm clouds are visible over Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, while scattered convective activity extends into Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
• The cloud build-up is also evident over eastern India.