It’s beginning to get hot in Oman as summer approaches

Muscat: People in parts of Oman have started feeling the hot weather conditions over the past few weeks with temperatures crossing 30 degrees Celsius.

Many areas in the country recorded temperatures of 30 degrees or more on March 6, 2022. They include Ibri, Nizwa, Ibra and Al Mudhaibi (all 31 degrees); Fahud, Samail, Muhut and Thumrait (32 degrees); Bahla and the Hallaniyat Islands (30 degrees); Adam, Ras Al Hadd and Marmul (33 degrees) and Haima (34 degrees).  

According to figures from the Department of Meteorology at the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), a number of towns and cities in Oman recorded maximum temperatures just short of 30 degrees.

Seeb and Amerat in capital Muscat showed temperatures of 28 and 29 degrees. Yanqul, Suwaiq, Sur, Masirah and Salalah, all recorded temperatures of 29 degrees. Meanwhile, Khasab, the capital of the northern Musandam governorate and a number of other settlements, including Duqm were at 28 degrees.

Some parts of the country, however, are still cooler. The mountainous regions of Jabal Samhan (26 degrees) and Jabal Qamar and Jabal Akhdar (22 degrees) are more pleasant during the day.

Night-time weather in many areas of the country is still very pleasant with temperatures under 20 degrees. With the exception of Sur, Ras Al Hadd, the Hallaniyat Islands, Salalah and Salalah Port, which posted temperatures of 21 degrees on Sunday, 6 March, the rest of the country recorded night time temperatures of 20 degrees or under.

Both today and tomorrow, low cloud cover and patches of fog are expected over some areas of the country.

There is a “chance of late night to early morning low level clouds or fog patches over governorates of South Al Sharqiyah, Al Wusta, Dhofar and along the coastal areas of Sea of Oman,” said the Civil Aviation Authority. “Visibility may reduce during fog formation.”

“The nights are still very pleasant to go out for a walk,” said Sulaiman, an Omani in Muttrah. “Whether you walk on the Corniche, by the beach in Qurum, or Al Shatti Street, the evenings – when the sun is setting – and the nights are great time to go for a walk.”

Mahesh, an expatriate, added: “Normally, we try to avoid going out in the afternoons these days, because it is starting to get hot again. We prefer going out once the sun starts to set, and try to maximise our time outside before returning home.”