Friday 26 / July / 2024
Muscat: It might not be snowing but ice has come to the high places of Oman as temperatures in Jebel Shams dropped to 4 degrees Celsius on Monday.
The cold wave in parts of Oman, which saw the mercury plunge, is likely to continue as north westerly winds chill Oman’s peaks, according to a spokesperson of Meteorology Department. “The northwesterly winds coming from the deserts of Iran and from Mediterranean Sea are cold and dry. This is pushing down the temperatures in Oman,” the spokesperson said.
On Monday, the Meteorology Department recorded 4 degree Celsius in Jebel Shams at night and 13 degrees during the day. Jebel Shams, part of the Al Hajar Mountain range and situated at an altitude of 3,004 metres above the sea level, has recorded as low as -8 degrees Celsius temperature in the recent past. “There are no signs of snow anywhere in Jebel Shams although temperatures are sliding,” said Said Khamis Al Khatri, manager of Jebel Shams Resort.
The drop in temperatures at the highest peak in the Gulf has started drawing tourists. “We are now having tourists from the UAE and Europe, besides tourists from Oman,” hoteliers said. With mercury touching 17 degrees Celsius in the capital, many citizens and residents visited Jebel Shams on Monday as it was a holiday.
“We visited the highest peak on Monday and it was awesome,” Satish, an Indian expat who visited the mountains, said. In its outlook for the next 24 hours, the Meteorological Department predicted mainly clear skies over most of the Sultanate, with chances of late night to early morning low level clouds or fog patches along most of the coastal areas extending to the interior with isolated rains.
The sea, it said, would be moderate to rough along the coastal area of Musandam and Oman Sea with maximum wave height of 2.3 metres and slight to moderate along the Arabian Sea with maximum wave height of 1.5 metres.
