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Qatar residents need to wait another four weeks to get some relief from the high heat and humidity that have been making life miserable for those venturing outdoors, if weather forecasts are any indication.
Humid conditions are predicted to prevail until September 14 in the country, according to the popular weather forecast portal accuweather.com.
Humidity ranged from 55 to 95% yesterday, the Qatar Meteorology Department at the Civil Aviation Authority said. The maximum temperature in Doha was 41C and the minimum 31C.
The Met office has forecast a maximum and minimum temperature of 40 and 31C for Doha today, with a humidity of 50-90%. While the same range of humidity is expected to prevail tomorrow also, mercury will marginally drop to 39-30C.
Though the official peak temperature in Doha yesterday was only 41C, it felt like much more to those who engaged in outdoor activities. Accuweather’s RealFeel equation put it at a whopping 50C, taking into account many different factors, including humidity, cloud cover, winds, sun intensity and angle of the
sun.
“I had to walk nearly 4km between 8.15 and 9am and it was unbearably hot and humid,” a resident, who could not get a cab to go home after giving his car for service, told Gulf Times. The only relief was the occasional light breeze.
Anticipating the situation, he had carried a bottle of water. “But, by the time I reached home, I was drenched in sweat and on the verge of collapse. I had to drink two large glasses of lime juice with salt to avoid dehydration,” he said.
Rather than the heat, it is the high humidity that increases the discomfort these days in Qatar.
If there is low humidity or less moisture in the air, sweat evaporates quickly and cools the body. But, if there is high humidity in the air, the evaporating process is slowed down or stopped because there is already a lot of moisture in the air.
Wind is another factor that determines the comfort factor. A steady light breeze promotes the evaporation of sweat and cools the body.
Humidity in Qatar is expected to decline substantially from September 15, accuweather.com has predicted. The maximum and minimum temperatures are forecast to be 38 and 29C until September 23.
Early October would see a further decline in the heat, with the maximum temperature dropping to 35 and the minimum to 27C, heralding the gradual onset of a pleasant weather.
