It’s definitely less hot in Doha now. It still wouldn’t seem quite right to call it ‘cooler’, not with a temperature still reaching about 38C every day, but it’s not quite as stifling as it was during the height of the summer. This has to be seen as a step in the right direction.
The weather from now on gets better almost every day. At this time of year, the temperature generally drops about 1C every week and slowly people begin to emerge from the confines of their air conditioned homes. More and more people are finally able to enjoy a walk along the Corniche and to relax in the many beautiful parks which are dotted around the city.
It’s strange how the onset of the autumnal weather is such a gradual transition, when you compare it to the abrupt start of the summer. While it’s true that the heat steadily increases before the summer, the humidity doesn’t. The change in humidity is as abrupt as someone flicking a switch and this is what makes the heat really unbearable. While the humidity gradually drops at the end of the summer, it doesn’t suddenly vanish altogether and that’s why the heat seems to ease so slowly.
Qatar’s gradual transition into autumnal weather is certainly different from the arrival of different seasons in other parts of the world. In South America, for example, at this time of year the locals wait for the arrival of the Santa Rosa storm. This storm can be incredibly violent and in 2012 it dropped nearly two metres (6 foot) of snow in Bariloche, Argentina in just three days.
The name of the storm dates back to 1615, when Dutch pirates were on their way to Peru to ransack the capital. A lady called Isabel Flores de Oliva prayed for a violent storm to overpower the pirates and protect the city. Legend has it that her prayers were answered and a major storm erupted, which shipwrecked the pirates. The lady later became a saint, named Santa Rosa, and the storms were named in her honour.
The locals across many parts of South America, including those in Argentina, Uruguay and Chile, expect huge storms to hit in a very specific time period. The downpours are scheduled between August 25 and September 4, but of course there are years that the storms don’t arrive. Despite this, there are usually plenty of showers around at this time of year anyway, and these help to keep the legend alive.
The meteorological reason for the showers and storms at this time of year is simply the change in season. South America is in the southern hemisphere, so it is emerging from its winter, and much of the region has been engulfed by cool air for the last few months. As the temperature of the region rises, the warmer weather reacts violently with the cool weather which still drifts northwards from Antarctica.
It’s a similar picture in other parts of the world as well, regardless of whether the region is waving goodbye to summer or winter. In North America, there are often immense thunderstorms and tornadoes at this time of year, as the cold air from Canada fights to establish its grip over the continent after the long hot summer.
In Qatar, however, there is not such a dramatic scene in the autumn, because there is no huge contrast in the weather around the region. It’s hot and dry to the north and west of us, and hot and humid to the southeast. Eventually the heat eases as the autumn wears on, and this is when we start to enjoy a little more variety in our weather.
Towards the end of the year, there is a greater chance of seeing some rain. Qatar’s rain is usually brought in by towering thunderstorms. They originate in the Mediterranean, heading east into Turkey, Syria and Lebanon, but then they have a choice. It’s like a weather cross roads; the systems can move east into northern Iran and the Caspian Sea, or southeast, through Iraq and towards us here in Qatar.
It can seem hard to believe at this time of year, but the downpours can be surprisingly heavy and matters aren’t helped by the sandy ground. By this point in the year, the land has been continuously baked hard by the sun for months, so it cannot absorb the vast quantity of water which falls from the sky during a wet weather. Expect huge puddles to form when it does rain, which can stick around for several days.
The thunderstorms are unlikely to reach us in September, instead we usually have to wait until October or November, but you know what they say: “Never say never”! In September 2012, a huge thunderstorm rolled across Doha at the end of the month bringing very heavy rain. Therefore there is a slight chance of rain this month, but it’s more likely we’ll just see the temperatures continue to ease. Even if we don’t see a shower, we should be cheerful because the weather is improving and it’s now downhill until we reach the beautiful weather of winter.
At this time of year, the temperature generally drops about 1C every week and slowly people begin to emerge from the confines of their air conditioned homes.
