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| Dust enveloped most parts of Doha following windy weather conditions yesterday |
Visibility will be limited to less than 4km with Northwesterly winds ranging from 20–30 knots carrying thick dust from northern areas. The QMD is also warning that winds reaching 38 knots can raise the wave height offshore and decrease the horizontal visibility to 2km or less during daytime, gradually improving overnight. Temperatures are not expected to exceed 42 degrees C or go below 30 degrees.
The official said that this particular weather phenomenon is called Albawareh, which comes from the name of the star Albareh. According to the QMD website, Albawareh is one of the most important weather phenomenons during the summer in the Arabian Gulf region, strongly affecting large areas in countries along the Gulf coast. It is well known in meteorology due to the 40 days of Shamal Winds, or the Summer Shamals.
During the last week of May to mid July, the region can experience strong northerly winds, known locally as Albawareh winds, decreasing during the night, mainly over land, and increasing by midday and afternoon.
The main cause of Albawareh is the deepening of the Indian seasonal monsoon low during summer, and its extension to an area with low pressure over southern Iran, northern Iraq and south eastern Arabia, associated with an extension of a high pressure system from east Mediterranean Sea to central and northwestern parts of Saudi Arabia.
When the extension of the low pressure is centred over central Arabia, the area will be affected by hot spells due to the light south westerly winds with very high temperatures.