And so it begins…

Remember how, just a couple of weeks ago, we were experiencing heavy rain, thunder and lightning?

Such refreshing memories. But it looks like it’s time to swap the umbrella for the sweat towel, if the latest weather reports are anything to go by.

Forecasters from the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology are predicting temperatures will reach a maximum of 40 degrees Celsius on the coast, and up to 43C inland over the next few days.

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So when is the hottest time of year in the UAE?

Some parts of the UAE are already feeling the temperature jump. On Saturday, the highest temperature recorded over the country was 41.8C in Mukhariz, 80 kilometres from Liwa in Abu Dhabi.

What about Dubai? Well, it looks like the mercury will get veeeeerry close to 40C this week, judging by this Weather.com forecast (and, for what it’s worth, our Snapchat forecast filter was reporting 37C at 11am this morning):

Hang on, is this normal?

While much of your office’s water cooler banter might revolve around how it’s hotter/colder/more weathery than usual, April is actually a known “transitional period” that sees “rapid changes in air pressure distributions” – and therefore “rapid changes in weather”, according to the NCMS.

Data gathered at the Dubai International Airport weather station from 2003 to 2016 shows the average temperature rises from 23C to 27C from March to April. 

The maximum temperature for April recorded in Dubai over the 13 year bracket was 43.5C.

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