Heat crisis: Persian Gulf faces life-threatening temperatures, and it will only get worse
The Persian Gulf is used to extreme heat and humidity, but AccuWeather RealFeel readings like the 149 degrees earlier this month are becoming more common thanks to climate change.
A thermometer on a sign for Kuwait's Al-Khaldiya Co-op Society reads 53 degrees Celsius (127.4 F) in Kuwait City on June 15, 2010 as the parliament prepares to hold an emergency session on June 20 to study the deteriorating power situation in the Gulf state after temperatures and electricity consumption hit record highs. (AFP Photo / Yasser Az-Zayyat via Getty Images)
In a stark reminder of the escalating climate crisis, the Persian Gulf region experienced a severe heat wave this month, with temperatures and humidity levels reaching nearly intolerable conditions.
On July 7, 2024, the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature hit a sweltering 149 degrees Fahrenheit (63.3 degrees Celsius) at Qeshm Dayrestan International Airport, Iran, located on an island in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. July 20 brought the same reading to the Persian Gulf International Airport in Asaluyeh, Iran.
Temperature doesn't tell the whole story
The way a temperature actually feels to a person can be more important than a specific temperature number because the experience of extreme heat over number values can be life-threatening in a matter of minutes.
"The difference between the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature and the actual air temperature range will have a significant impact on those who are most susceptible to heat and heat stroke. What many people don’t realize is that the temperature reading that is typically provided is an air temperature in the shade, and yet people are not often in the shade," said AccuWeather Founder & Executive Chairman and co-inventor of the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature.
Dr. Myers added, "The temperature and other indices do not tell the whole story of how weather conditions make us feel. Other weather variables in addition to temperature such as sunlight, humidity, wind, precipitation, and a multitude of other factors can impact our comfort or discomfort outside and may even cause harm or illness."
AccuWeather also added the RealFeel Shade™ temperature to AccuWeather.com and the AccuWeather apps in 2020 to help users determine what the air will feel like in the shade, helpful for planning outdoor activities.
What causes the extreme conditions in the Persian Gulf?
Looking along the desert towards Dubai's business district. (Photo credit: Getty Images)
Amid the hottest deserts on Earth, the Persian Gulf is the warmest body of water in the world. Heat, ample sunshine and humidity combine to create extreme conditions. Dew points at coastal stations can rise into the 90s. In the United States, dew points above 70 are considered uncomfortable.
World ocean temperature records are not maintained, but a research paper studying the years 2016 to 2020 found a maximum sea-surface temperature of 99.7 degrees F (37.6 C) in the middle of Kuwait Bay, which may be a world record.
What's the forecast?
July and August are the hottest months of the year across the region, and there will be no reprieve until autumn, AccuWeather Lead International Forecaster Jason Nicholls said.
AccuWeather RealFeel Temperatures on the evening of July 26, 2024. Click to see live map.
"Temperatures, which have been higher than the historical average, will be closer to average readings [this] week, but extreme heat could build again later next week," Nicholls explained, saying high pressure will build over Iran the week of Aug. 5. RealFeel temperatures around Dubai should be in the lower to middle 110s this week and can be around 120 F later next week. Even at night, it will be hot."
How do people in Dubai deal with the heat?
Because of the extreme heat, The UAE doesn't allow outside work between 12:30 and 3 p.m., the Washington Post reports. Air conditioning is deployed nearly everywhere in Dubai; stores without A/C won't open.
Workers rest along a pavement on a hot summer day in Dubai on July 12, 2023. Warming trends brought on by climate change threaten to make entire cities unlivable by the end of the century, according to experts. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)
The city has found other unique ways to deal with the heat and humidity. Delivery companies routinely transport large blocks of ice to pools. Ice baths are a popular activity on the shore. Indoor ski arenas, chilled theatres, public cooling centers and snowy summer camps are also available.
Clients prepare to fall into an ice bath on one of the beaches in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on July 28, 2023. Summer is the slow season for ice baths, as many of the residents in Dubai go abroad to escape the UAE's extreme temperatures. (Photo by Andrea DiCenzo For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
How does climate change influence extreme heat events?
"Climate change is clearly having a significant impact on the Persian Gulf region," AccuWeather Climate Expert Brett Anderson said. "We are seeing more days and locations surpassing the 122-degree-Fahrenheit (50-degree-Celsius) mark, which is very extreme and dangerous, even in this typically hot region."
The trend of increasing frequency of extreme heat during the summer months is likely to continue for decades to come as greenhouse gases in the atmosphere contribute to warming. The greenhouse effect is the process through which heat is trapped near Earth's surface by greenhouse gases. "Imagine these gases as a cozy blanket enveloping our planet, helping to maintain a warmer temperature than it would have otherwise," NASA noted.
"We know that global warming will be highly local, and the warming will be unevenly distributed," Myers said. "Some places on the planet will see an even higher increase in temperatures than the global average."
"Adding in humidity and other factors," Anderson elaborated, "AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures in the cities around the Persian Gulf could exceed 131 F (55 C) on those extremely hot days, which is like spending an afternoon on the hottest day of the year in Death Valley, California."
Delivery riders take a break in one of the new buses, an air-conditioned rest stop, which allows riders a break from the summer heat on July 31, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The buses are also equipped with water, snacks, and a cooling vest, which riders can wear while they're out driving to help bring down their body's core temperature. Deployed throughout the UAE, these rest stops are part of summer initiatives aimed at enhancing safety for delivery riders by offering spaces to cool down during the sweltering days when temperatures consistently soar to 113 degrees Fahrenheit or more. (Photo by Andrea DiCenzo for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
At these levels of intense heat, there is a very high danger of dehydration, heatstroke and heat exhaustion. Outdoor activities are dangerous and potentially life-threatening, the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature guide says.
More heat means expanded droughts with extreme flooding events
More than a year’s worth of rain in just a day caused massive flooding throughout Dubai from April 16-17.
The impact of seeing more extreme heat will include a higher frequency of long-term droughts and even an expansion of deserts. This will also mean that dust and sand storms will likely become more prevalent.
When rain does fall, it may mean higher rainfall rates. Higher rainfall rates combined with dry ground, which does not absorb the water as much, could lead to extreme flooding, such as the 2024 Dubai flood, Anderson added.
A view of a desert camp with Kuwaiti flags flying in the wind during a severe dust storm in Rawdatein, 120 Km North of Kuwait City on Saturday, March 17, 2012. Northwesterly winds of 50 kph carried the dust and sand, to reduce visibility and bring hardship to the desert camp. (AP Photo/Gustavo Ferrari)
This increase in extreme heat may also lead to more wind, which, in addition to the sand storms, can result in a rapid spread of wildfires in areas covered with dried-out vegetation. This threat could also expand into densely populated villages with homes made of combustible material.
"In some places, as the climate continues to warm, it may become difficult for people to live safely without air conditioning, which could result in migration to other areas," AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter said.
The world can now expect that with every degree of temperature increase, roughly a billion people will be pushed outside the zone in which humans have lived for thousands of years," The NY Times noted. "For a long time, the climate alarm has been sounded in terms of its economic toll, but now it can increasingly be counted in people harmed."
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