The Suhail star is an indicator of “a moderate climate in the region”.
Qatar’s scorching temperatures are expected to drop following the reappearance of ‘Najm Suhail’ on Thursday, Doha’s state news agency (QNA) reported on Monday.
Citing the Qatar Calendar House (QCH), the report offered positive weather forecasts for the country and the rest of the Gulf region.
Dr. Bashir Marzouq, an astronomer at QCH, explained to the news agency that residents in Qatar can spot the star towards the southern horizon during the first week of next September.
The brightest star in the night sky, Sirius, can guide skywatchers towards Suhail.
Astronomers in the region have long relied on the appearance of Najm Suhail, or the “Suhail Star”, as an indicator of the end of the summer season and beginning of winter.
According to QNA, the Suhail star is an indicator of “a moderate climate in the region” and the beginning of the gradual seasonal change as well as “the end of the poisonous winds”. The intensity of the night heat is expected to drop as daytime gradually becomes shorter.
The appearance of the star is also commonly accompanied with more chances of rain.
“The rise of the star of Suhail was associated with various aspects of the life of the Arabs, past and present. Where farmers prepare to plow the land when Suhail rises in order to be ready before the rainy season,” QNA explained.
‘Hottest July on record’
Qatar faced a rise in temperatures from mid July with a maximum range of 42-48 degrees celsius, as experts across the world warned of an alarming trend in increasing numbers.
Scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York confirmed that July 2023 held the hottest global temperature ever in recorded history.
The US space agency said July 2023 was 0.24 degrees Celsius warmer than any other July in NASA’s record, and it was 1.18 °C hotter than the average July between 1951 and 1980. According to NASA data, the five hottest Julys since 1880 have all happened in the last five years.
“This July was not just warmer than any previous July – it was the warmest month in our record, which goes back to 1880,” said GISS Director Gavin Schmidt.
“The science is clear this isn’t normal. Alarming warming around the world is driven primarily by human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. And that rise in average temperatures is fueling dangerous extreme heat that people are experiencing here at home and worldwide,” Schmidt added.
