Dubai: The heat wave in the UAE is expected to persist on Wednesday, but the temperature is likely to drop significantly in the western part of the country on Thursday.
The mercury hovered around 45 degrees Celsius and reached the 50C mark in the interior parts of the country on Tuesday. The highest recorded daytime temperature — the highest so far in the year — was in Sweihan in Al Ain at 50.5C at noon, similar to the temperatures recorded in the Sahara desert during summer.
On Tuesday, Dubai recorded a temperature of 43.6C at the Burj Khalifa weather station. The temperature in the southern parts of Abu Dhabi such as Hamim touched 49.1C, Umm Azimul was pegged at 48.9C and Qasyoura reached 48.4C.
* For a 10 day weather forecast, visit the GulfNews.com weather page.
The sweltering heat has been affecting the country since Monday.
“Our country is being affected by a very hot air mass coming from the Empty Quarter in Saudi Arabia. It is associated with the south-easterly wind that will push temperatures to its maximum of between 45C and 49C,” a forecaster from the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology told Gulf News.
This hot weather will affect the interior parts such as western and southern Abu Dhabi, parts of Dubai, Al Ain. Temperature over coastal areas, however, will be below 40C.
“On Thursday, we expect a significant drop in temperature of between three and five degrees in the western area. The southern part will remain hot with temperatures of between 40C and 45C,” the forecaster said.
Light to moderate winds will blow dust over open areas. Night-time temperatures on Wednesday will drop and will be between 28C and 34C. Relative humidity will increase during night and early morning over some western coastal areas, with the formation of fog.
The sea will be slightly to moderately rough in the Arabian Gulf and in Oman Sea.
