In an extremely rare event, snow has fallen in the desert kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The rare snowfall came as temperatures in January plummeted to minus 2 degrees centigrade (28F). Summertime temperatures in Saudi Arabia often reach 50 degrees centigrade (122F) on a daily basis. The unusual weather had people flocking out of their homes to experience the snow and take photographs of the unusual spectacle. While there was a scattering of snow across a wide region, the most-heavy dusting was in the Aseer region, south of Mecca and sitting on the coast of the Red sea.
Sahara Desert Sees Snow For First Time In Years - Saudi Arabia Covered - https://t.co/23eTbDwCbz pic.twitter.com/RIcifcJH0j
— Radio Nova 100 (@radionova100) January 18, 2021
It is the first time in over a century that temperatures below freezing have been recorded in the kingdom, January is the coldest month in Saudi Arabia, but the average temperature is still a balmy 20.2C.
Saudi Arabia is known as one of the hottest countries in the world where temperatures make many regions unliveable. Indeed, for a country that is the 12th largest in the world by landmass, Saudi Arabia only has 34 million residents, mostly living in urban enclaves.
The cause of the cold-snap is believed to be a phenomenon known as anticyclones, which brings cold winds over the desert. Those anticyclones that reach Saudi Arabia tend to come from central-Asia. As these winds pick up moisture on their journey, they then disperse this moisture as snow when they reach the desert climate.
Saudi Arabia is not the only extremely hot country to receive snowfall this year. Ain Sefra, in the North African nation of Algeria, also received significant snowfall this month as temperatures fell to minus 3 degrees centigrade (26.6F). Ain Sefra, sometimes known as 'The Gateway to the Desert', lies 1,000 metres above sea-level in the Atlas Mountains bordering the Sahara. Images of the small town covered in the snow were later shared online by photographer Karim Bouchetata showing hill-tops normally dusty with sand, covered in snow.
Algeria and Saudi Arabia deserts are covered in snow this January 2021 as temperatures dipped to -2°C pic.twitter.com/HQchXw8hG2
— SᗯᗩᕼIá’ªI~á‘ᑌᑎᗪIT (@YussufMwinyi) January 18, 2021
Heavy snow was also recorded in Lebanon, Iran and Syria, and as much as 4-feet of snow was recorded in some areas.
While global warming may be expected to make all areas of the world universally hotter, this is in fact, not the case. As temperatures rise as a global average, this can disrupt normal weather patterns and result in some formally hotter areas receiving freak weather such as that seen this month. Meteorologists have now confirmed that the year 2020 was the hottest year on record and warn that governments must do much more to target carbon emissions if they are to avoid devastating repercussions in the future.
h/t: The Sun
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