You’re not imagining things, it’s seriously cold this year…

If you’ve been feeling the need to pull on extra layers these past few weeks, you’re not alone. The UAE is currently experiencing it’s coldest January ever, according to the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM).

An NCM official told Gulf News, “While it is too early to conclude whether we are experiencing the coldest winter in the UAE, right now, it is certainly the coldest January we have ever seen.”

A new record low of -2°C was recorded on Sunday in Raknah, in Al Ain, and the cool weather is expected to continue until February.

Things have warmed up ever so slightly since Sunday, with a low of 2.1°C recorded yesterday in Raknah, and a high of 27.6 in Dibba.

UAE residents have shared snaps of the cold spell, with ice covering cars and branches in the chilly interior of the country. We’re yet to see snowfall, as we did in January last year at Ras Al Khaimah, but with February still to come (the month that has the fewest number of sunlight hours).

 

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The NCM official said the UAE’s icy temperatures are due to a “cold mass” coming from the northeast, bringing cold northeasterly winds. The forecaster said, “Minimum temperatures this month, especially in internal parts of the UAE, will be between 5°C to 10°C, and will be lower in mountainous regions. In coastal areas, like Dubai and Sharjah, minimum temperatures will be between 11°C to 17°C.”

Winter officially started in the UAE on December 22, which marks the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere, and will last until March 20.