Rainy weekend in the UAE: Cloudy with a chance of rainfall, thunder and lightning from January 15 to 18, says NCM

Dubai: Get ready for a rainy weekend in the UAE. The National Center of Meteorology has said that  UAE residents will see cloudy and rainy weather from Saturday, January 15 till Tuesday, January 18 with clouds decreseaing on Wednesday. 

Dusty, cloudy on Saturday

According to the NCM: "[The weather will be] dusty and partly cloudy, gradually becoming cloudy in the afternoon and evening, especially on some eastern and northern regions, islands and the sea, with a chance of rain."

Lightning and thunder on Sunday

The weather bureau forecast added: "The weather will be cloudy over scattered areas of the country, associated with convective clouds, accompanied by rainfall with intervals, lightning and thunder at times, especially over some eastern and northern areas, and extending over some western areas, coast and island."

The NCM regularly monitors convective cloud formation over the UAE for cloud seeding to enhance rainfall over the country.

Clouds amount will gradually decrease on Wednesday with a decrease in temperatures.

Strong winds at times

During this period, moderate to strong winds are expected at times, especially with the formation of convective clouds. This will cause blowing dust and sand with poor horizontal visibility at times.

Moderate to rough seas

It's best to put your weekend beach plans on hold. The sea along the UAE coastline will be moderate to rough, both in the Arabian Gulf and Oman Sea, especially with the formation of convective clouds.

Explaining the weather pattern, an NCM official said: "The country will be affected by the extension of surface low pressure from the southwest, accompanied by moist easterly winds with an upper air trough extending from the west. This will be accompanied by a cold air mass, and the flow of clouds from the Red sea towards the country with rainy convective clouds."