On July 15, Qatar witnessed the first night of the Al-Hana’a Star, during which the heat and humidity levels would increase for 13 consecutive days, according to the Meteorological Department.
The local temperature is expected to witness a relative increase between Thursday and Friday as Qatar marks the hot summer season, according to the Meteorological Department.
In a post on X on Tuesday, the weather department shared a graph showing the expected rise in temperatures to above 45 degrees Celsius and would later dip to below 45 by Saturday.
Such a rise in temperature is expected given that Qatar had entered its summer season on June 20, with temperatures commonly exceeding 45C.
The Gulf state’s two main seasons are desert-climate summers and mild, pleasant winters with low annual rainfall.
The winter period lasts from November to February, with average temperatures ranging from 15C to 20C. The scorching hot, humid summer season then begins in June and ends late September, with temperatures hitting 50C. In summer, humidity can reach 60 percent.
Qatar also gets 14 hours of daylight between May and August before gradually being reduced to around 10 hours.
On July 15, Qatar witnessed the first night of the Al-Hana’a Star, during which the heat and humidity levels would increase for 13 consecutive days, according to the Meteorological Department.
Explaining the weather change, the local department said the heat would reach its peak in what Arabs describe as “embers of heat.” Fog would also form in coastal areas as winds calm.
Astronomers in the Middle East region have long relied on the appearance of different stars as indicators of the beginning of weather seasons.
Astrology was among the most significant disciplines in the Middle East during the Abbasid times in Baghdad between the eighth and tenth centuries, which built on existing sources from Greece, Iran and India.
Rulers at the time, including those in Cairo, Rayy, Isfahan, and other areas heavily invested in astrology.
Bedouins across the Middle East then also relied on astrology to predict climate and seasonal changes, eventually reaching a point where they could detect Mecca’s direction for the daily five prayers in Islam.
