Riyadh heavy thunderstorm (click here)

Tons of rain and thunderstorms have affected Saudi Arabia and other parts of the [...]]]>

Riyadh heavy thunderstorm (click here)

Tons of rain and thunderstorms have affected Saudi Arabia and other parts of the Arabian Peninsula.

Winter is really gone I guess, but it didn’t depart before sending more rain & storm clouds. The photo above best explains how mother nature can deliver wild changing weather, and definetely chaging seasons as well. While Spring has started in the UAE, [...]]]>

Rain and storm clouds deprating Dubai, UAE on Mar 2nd, 2010 (from GulfNews.com)

Winter is really gone I guess, but it didn’t depart before sending more rain & storm clouds. The photo above best explains how mother nature can deliver wild changing weather, and definetely chaging seasons as well. While Spring has started in the UAE, the window of rain continues until early April. But with increasing temperature, winter has become shorter in the UAE. Considering that past average high in March is 25c in Dubai, we are now recording average highs of around 30c or more in March over the last few years.

What to expect next: increasing temperature with a small chance of low pressure systems making a comeback during Spring. In 2009, storms and heavy rain affected the UAE between Mar 25 and Apr 10th. I hope history repeats itself.

How do I rate this winter?! It has certainly been one of the warmest winters I have experienced in the UAE. But there were several rain events that saved this winter from being a bad one I guess.

What do you think about this winter?!

See youtube videos of the storm here and here.

RAK Wadis flooded Feb 6 2010 (image source: GulfNews)

The cold front that has swept through the UAE and Oman generated a widespread cloud cover with showers in some parts of the UAE. However, in northern UAE especially in Ras Al Khaymah heavy thunderstorms produced heavy rain and flooded the wadis there, [...]]]>

RAK Wadis flooded Feb 6 2010 (image source: GulfNews)

The cold front that has swept through the UAE and Oman generated a widespread cloud cover with showers in some parts of the UAE. However, in northern UAE especially in Ras Al Khaymah heavy thunderstorms produced heavy rain and flooded the wadis there, resulting in 2 casualities and forcing the authorities to rescue more than 300 people stranded in RAK Wadis. Rainfall amounts exceeded 60mm in some parts of RAK.

Clouds hugging UAE mountains Feb 6 2010 (image source: GulfNews)

 

IR Satellite image at 18:30 GMT on Feb 5th, 2010 as clouds appraoch the UAE & Oman

Later the cold front entered Oman and produced widespread rainfall and some heavy storms. Rain extended from northern to southern Oman (Salalah) which rarely receives winter rain. Similar to what happened in the UAE, 2 people died in Oman with many being stranded in Wadis.

The cold front also produced a few showers in Qatar, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia before affecting the UAE & Oman. Heavy rain also fell over the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman.

As the cold front left the region, cooler and gusty conditions (around 50 Km/hr in Bahrain) took place with colder nights with Sharjah airport recording 8c at 7AM on Feb 9, 2010. Other gulf countries experienced cold conditions as daytime temperatures struggled to exceed mid teens.

Sunday could bring showers to Kuwait and northern Arabian Gulf, southern Iraq, and southern Iran.

Starting Monday, very cold upper air associated with an upper air low approaching Iran, will unleash more rain and snow over Iran and Iraq.

On Tuesday, this cold front starts crossing the Arabian Gulf region, but sadly, there will [...]]]>

Sunday could bring showers to Kuwait and northern Arabian Gulf, southern Iraq, and southern Iran.

Starting Monday, very cold upper air associated with an upper air low approaching Iran, will unleash more rain and snow over Iran and Iraq.

On Tuesday, this cold front starts crossing the Arabian Gulf region, but sadly, there will be little moisture for this cold front to tap on. Therefore, there will just be some clouds with a small chance of rain in the northern parts of the UAE and Oman.

Between Sunday and Tuesday, it will be very warm in the UAE with near-record highs.

Nevertheless, cold air behind the low is going to suddenly cool the whole region starting Tuesday for northern Arabian Gulf such as Kuwait. On Wednesday, cool air arrives to the UAE and the southern gulf region, dropping high temperature by around 8 degrees (from late 20s or even 30c to early 20c and late teens by Thursday). In a nutshell, at time of coldest air, high temperature will hover around mid teens in Kuwait city and Riyadh, mid to late teens in Bahrain and Qatar, and late teens in the UAE most likely on Thursday. The weather will quickly warm up by the end of the weekend, but not before experiencing the coldest nights of this season.

But, there are signs of extreme weather in the UAE, the Arabian Gulf, and the Gulf of Oman. I’m not talking about rain. I’m referring to high winds and waves. Due to the extreme proximity of cold and warm air, surface high and low pressures, windy and gusty conditions will develop very quickly on Wednesday and Thursday across the UAE. Highest expected winds could reach 55 Km/h with gusts possibly hitting more than 60 Km/hr. That means the weather will feel much cooler than recorded temperature due to wind chill.

Considering that there will almost be a full moon on Wednesday/Thursday, I’m wondering how high sea waves could be. This photo has been taken on Jan 11, 2005. Will something similar happens? More accurate forecasts later.

High waves in Sharjah Jan 11, 2005

Photo of Flood in Egypt (source: storm.ae)

____________________________

 

This is what I [...]]]> _____
Recap:
There have been more than 10 death cases in Egypt due to the flood in addition to damage to properties. There have also been casualities and/or damage in Palestine, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. There is an unconfirmed report of more than 200mm of rain falling in Sinai.

Photo of Flood in Egypt (source: storm.ae)

____________________________

 

This is what I like about the weather. There are no strict rules the weather has to follow. The element of surprise is always there, and there could always be extreme weather anywhere in the world. At such times, one wonders if the definition of “average weather” has any meaning at all.

Anyways, extreme weather happens when the right ingredients come at the right time and in the right place, potentially resulting in a natural disaster often in the wrong place. And this time, extreme weather has decided to pay Egypt, one of the driest places on earth, a nasty visit!

Rainfall in Egypt is mainly confined to a narrow area along north coast (i.e. Alexandria) where Middeteranian lows hardly graze the north coasts. While average rainfall along the north coast can reach 200mm per year, rainfall amount drops significantly in interior areas of Egypt, where Cairo hardly received 10mm of rain per year, if nothing at all, due to very dry desert air, which makes all cold fronts very dry ones. South of Cairo, only a trace of rain is recorded, or in most cases no rain at all. Some areas can experience no rain for several years.

Egypt-map

But tomorrow (Sunday Jan 17, 2010), a deep upper low that will dive more southward than normal, drawing with it lots of equatorial moisture, and mixing it with cold air aloft, will result in a wide area of extreme rainfall and strong thunderstorms in the eastern half of the interior region of Egypt. Many areas could exceed 50mm of rain within the span of 24 hours only (if not less than 12 hours). And should strong thunderstorms hit, there could be as much as 100mm or 150mm in those areas. With such a very unstable atmosphere, it is hard to pinpoint exaclty where extreme rainfall will hit, but the NE quadrant of Egypt from all the way from the north coast to the mid interior areas of Egypt could experience very heavy rain. But the mountaineous areas of Egypt should really watch out for runoffs and flash floods. I can’t imagine what exactly will happen in an area that hardly receives 10 mm or no rain per year.

500mb heights Moday 00:00 GMT Jan 17, 2010

Rainfall on Sunday Jan 17, 2010

Rain and thunderstorms will also spread quickly to other countries (that are more accustomed to rain) such as Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Jordan, and NW Saudi Arabia. It is important to note that all of these areas are prone to very heavy rain as well. However, 2 points make interior areas of Egypt under the spotlight: First, it doesn’t rain there and Second is that extreme rainfall will fall in a very short period of time.

Rainfall on Monday Jan 18, 2010

A few rounds of scaterred showers and thunderstorms have affected the UAE early Friday to Saturday (Dec 25 – 26).  Showers have also affected the UAE during the last weekend on Dec 18 and 19.  One particular thunderstorm on Dec 25 affected Sharjah,  Ajman, and Umm Al Quwain produced [...]]]>

Sharjah Thunderstorm Dec 25, 2009 (Source: Gulfnews)

A few rounds of scaterred showers and thunderstorms have affected the UAE early Friday to Saturday (Dec 25 – 26).  Showers have also affected the UAE during the last weekend on Dec 18 and 19.  One particular thunderstorm on Dec 25 affected Sharjah,  Ajman, and Umm Al Quwain produced incredible lightning (mostly cloud-to-ground) and very loud thunder even though it was not a big storm, but strong enough for small hail to fall.

The next few days are likely to be partly cloudy and slighltly cooler with mild days and cool nights.

Looking forward, the days between Dec 31 and Jan 2 could bring another opportunity for rain as an upper low brings cold air aloft, destabilizing the gulf atmosphere. Stay tuned for more updates with regard to the timing, duration, intensity, and amount of the rain.

500 mb heights for Jan 1st

Heavy rainfall and thunderstorms have affected the UAE between Dec 11 and 13, 2009. Highest rainfall was in Al Foah where 146mm of rain has been recorded. The capital city Abu Dhabi recorded around 104mm, which is almost double the annual average. Dubai and Sharjah both recorded around 30mm of rain. [...]]]>

Rainbow in Sharjah (Source: GulfNews)

Heavy rainfall and thunderstorms have affected the UAE between Dec 11 and 13, 2009. Highest rainfall was in Al Foah where 146mm of rain has been recorded. The capital city Abu Dhabi recorded around 104mm, which is almost double the annual average. Dubai and Sharjah both recorded around 30mm of rain. I must say that forecasts were predicting less than 25mm for Abu Dhabi and the surrounding areas, and more rainfall for northern UAE near Ras Al Khaymah which got only 25-35mm, which is 25 to 50% below forecasted amount. Many mountainuous areas and wadis in the UAE were flooded.

Much of the region experienced wet weather, including Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, parts of Saudi Arabia, and northern Oman which was hit hard like the UAE. Much rainfall has also fallen on the Arabian and Oman Gulf

(Source: GulfNews)

Read more about the rain here.
More photos here.