Cold wave hits UAE; how weather will shift as Ramadan begins
The first few days of Ramadan will bring lower temperatures to those observing the fast in the UAE. A cold wave strike on February 25 resulted in a minimum temperature decrease of five degrees between Monday and Tuesday.
Temperatures dropped below 10°C in the UAE during Wednesday. The country’s meteorological department expert predicts cooler weather will continue for several days.
The National Centre of Meteorology's Dr Ahmed Habib provided an explanation for the temperature shift. Between Monday and Tuesday the temperature dropped noticeably by up to 5 degrees during this week. An air mass from the northern Arabian Gulf region, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iraq, affected the weather conditions yesterday (on Tuesday).
A cold air mass with a north-westerly wind direction and high pressure extension originated from cold regions in Iraq, northern Saudi Arabia, and Jordan before moving towards the UAE.
What causes neighbouring countries to maintain lower temperatures than the UAE?
A moderate cold wave has hit Saudi Arabia since Monday with freezing temperatures occurring in its northern and central regions.
A powerful Siberian polar cold wave triggered the coldest February in 60 years for Kuwait through an exceptional temperature drop. Locations such as Mataraba and Salmi recorded minimum temperatures that reached down to -1°C.
Habib explained that the modification of the air mass as it moved southward led to a gradual temperature increase. The variation in temperature across the Arabian Gulf between its northern and southern regions becomes clear from this information. Temperatures approached freezing levels in northern Saudi Arabia while nighttime temperatures in the UAE hovered between 9-10°C but reached higher peaks during the day.
Wednesday's temperatures remain unchanged from Tuesday with only a minimal increase expected as the north-westerly wind continues to blow.
For the following five days temperatures will stay mostly constant with only a minor increase projected. During the start of Ramadan people will experience pleasant weather with temperatures remaining cool to moderate during early morning and evening hours. The interior and mountainous areas will experience this effect very strongly.
Lower wind speed today
The north westerly wind will maintain its influence on us. Today cloud cover exists primarily above the sea and in the northern regions of the UAE. Today has more sunshine than yesterday and weaker north-westerly winds which produce only moderate to fresh sea winds.
Today feels warmer than yesterday despite the air mass remaining unchanged. Today we experience warmer conditions because of the decreased wind speed while yesterday's stronger winds created a cooler feeling.
The weather analyst predicted that cloud cover will persist throughout the northern UAE.
Ras al Khaimah should expect light rain during Wednesday evening and Thursday while Abu Dhabi will experience only cloud cover. According to Habib the Arabian Gulf will maintain rough conditions for the next five days while the Oman Sea will exhibit moderate conditions with occasional rough patches.
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