The air felt like an exceptional 73 degrees Celsius in Bandar Mahshahr, Khuzestan Province, on Friday, and no relief is expected in the foreseeable future.
Due to extreme heat and humidity, Bandar Mahshahr registered an apparent temperature of 154 F (68 C) on Thursday.
“That was one of the most incredible temperature observations I have ever seen and it is one of the most extreme readings ever in the world,” stated AccuWeather Meteorologist Anthony Sagliani.
However, such an exceptional apparent temperature outdid itself on Friday, AccuWeather reported.
The combination of an actual temperature of 46 C and a dew point temperature of 32 C pushed the apparent temperature to 73 C Friday afternoon local time. This reading would have been even higher if a breeze was not blowing, a factor in the calculation of the apparent temperature.
“A strong ridge of high pressure has persisted over the Middle East through much of July, resulting in the extreme heat wave in what many would consider one of the hottest places in the world,” stated Sagliani.
Amid this heat wave, Baghdad experienced its all-time record high on Thursday when temperatures soared to 51 C.
“Around the Persian Gulf, where water temperatures are in the lower to middle 30s C, the extreme heat combines with incredibly high humidity to produce astounding apparent temperatures,” Sagliani continued with regard to the exceptional heat around Bandar Mahshahr.
“As the land heats up around the Persian Gulf, the air rises quickly and rushes inland … creating an onshore wind that pulls humid air sitting over the waters into coastal communities,” he added.
Water temperatures in the Persian Gulf are running a bit above normal, contributing to even higher than normal humidity.
“Believe it or not, it is always very humid in these places surrounding the Persian Gulf during the summer, but the nature of the extreme heat wave is causing some of the highest combinations of heat and humidity ever observed,” he continued.
