Emirates Meteorology Blog

Precipitation forecast. Notice the green/blue shading over Kuwait and surrounding areas. Much higher rainfall over the Middeteranian and Iran

An upper low is diving southward to the eastern Middeteranian countries will bring rain and thunderstorms to various areas in the Middle East. Between today (Saturday) and Wednesday Nov 4th, 2009, rain and thunderstorms will affect most of the eastern middeteranian coasts of Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. There will also be rain in NW Iran and parts of Iraq.

But Kuwait and parts of Saudi Arabia … Continue reading Rain and thunderstorms in Kuwait, parts of Saudi Arabia, and Northern Arabian Gulf »»»

It has been quite unsettled in the northwest areas of Saudi Arabia for the last 24 hours with several thunderstorms. This is due to plunging jet stream associated with a 500mb low that brought cooler air aloft. Thunderstorms have also affected Iraq

500 mb heights as of 0000 GMT Sat Oct 24, 2009 (GFS)

… Continue reading Rain and Thunderstorms over NW Saudi Arabia »»»

Almost certainly, October is generally a calm and dry month, marking the transition between summer and winter with almost no rainfall in the UAE. During a normal October, cold fronts are still far away (somewhere in the Middeteranian), the Indian Monsoon is retreating, and tropical lows in the Arabian Sea could be forming (sometimes). So, the UAE and the Arabian Gulf countries become largely islolated from any notable weather forces. But there have been a few of extreme October months in Arabia long time ago. In fact, October proved to be a month where winter and tropical rain are both possible in the UAE even if our average rainfall is zero. Of course, our average is not based on long-term data.

October 1997:

During exceptionally wet winters, October cold fronts are possible but extremely rare. The last time UAE had an October cold front with measurable rainfall was in 1997, which could be our only measurable winter rainfall in October for the last 20-30 years (with only a trace recorded in 1995 and 2000). And I’m not talking about mountainous afternoon thunderstorms that form regulary during the warm months in the UAE.

October 1997 rainfall

October 1948:

This was a strange October. Apparently … Continue reading October Long Time Ago in Arabia and the UAE »»»