If your weather app has been looking almost offensively hot this week, brace yourself as it’s going to get worse. From May 25 to June 2 will be Nautapa, which literally translates to the nine most intense days. This annual phenomenon has astronomical and folkloric roots, and is observed across generations in North India. Being highly searched online at present, here’s why it has significance beyond just the heat.Beginning May 25, Nautapa will bring soaring temperatures across North India until June 2. (Photo: Sanjeev Verma/ HT(for representational purpose only))What’s the astrological take?Literally translating to nine fires or nine burning days, Nautapa is a period rooted in Hindu astronomical tradition. It marks the nine days when the sun enters the Rohini Nakshatra, one of the brightest stars in the sky, making its position particularly intense and its heat especially punishing. This year, it will be observed from May 25 to June 2.What does Science say?The timing of Nautapa isn’t just folklore as meteorology backs it up too. In late May and early June, the Sun’s position shifts to almost directly overhead northern India, hovering near the Tropic of Cancer. When solar rays hit the Earth’s surface at that near-perpendicular angle, the ground absorbs heat at its maximum’ and there’s nowhere for that energy to go but up, into the air around us. Add to that a steep drop in humidity levels, and the result is the kind of dry, relentless heat that makes stepping outside feel like opening an oven door. It’s precisely these conditions that turn this period into prime heatwave season across the region.Why is this suddenly trending?Nautapa isn’t new! Your granny would have known about it for decades. But, every year around this time it starts trending and with the popularity of social media it has only grown, as people look for an explanation for the wall of heat they’ve walked into. There is something oddly comforting about finding out that the unbearable weather isn’t random but has a name, history, and even an end date.How to get thrive through the nine day? Ayurvedacharya Dr Partap Chauhan shares, “Nautapa is when the Pitta Dosha (fire) in our body is in its most intense form. This leads to several problems, including a weaker digestive system, increased dehydration, and loss of important minerals through perspiration. Therefore, the temperature of food and beverages should be light, cool, and hydrating during this time period so as not to hurt or aggravate these issues.”Parul Yadav, chief dietician at a Gurugram-based hospital, advises that “On such hot days since the body uses much effort to keep the body temperature stable, it’s advisable to eat small portions at several times instead of eating large meals at once. Besides, having enough sleep is vital because lack of it leads to heat fatigue and makes one prone to other stresses.”Mind it!1. Consume high water content seasonal fruits such as watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, pomegranate and coconut water. Homemade drinks like buttermilk, aam panna, sattu sharbat, fennel water and bael juice can help naturally cool the body down as well as nourish the digestive system.2. Food should be light and easily digestible, either by itself or in conjunction with the following ingredients: moong dal, khichdi, curd rice, steamed vegetables, and chapatis. Including cooling herbs and spices (mint, coriander, fennel and cardamom).3. Avoid oily, spicy, fried, excessively sugary and/or carbonated foods, beverages and excessive caffeine, as these further contribute to heat in the body and increase acidity, bloating, or fatigue.4. Choose loose-fitting, light-coloured, and cotton clothing. These help the body to breathe and moderate the internal temperature naturally, Also avoid intense physical exercise or travelling excessively during the hottest part of the day as it can lead to dehydration.5. Avoid drinks such as tea, coffee, soft drinks, and alcohol as these increase dehydration in the body.Inputs by dietician Parul Yadav and clinical nutritionist Anshul Singh- Inputs by Henna Rakheja