Dubai: Residents expecting winter “to come soon” due to the foggy conditions on Sunday and Monday in the UAE may just hold their excitement for now as winter is still months away, although cooler weather is on the way.
Residents woke to another foggy, misty, and cool morning yesterday as they commuted to work and school. Some of them took to Twitter to share their excitement over the coming winter.
This second straight day of dense fog blanketing the country is the result of stable weather, a forecaster from the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) said.
“The fog is caused by excess water vapour over land and light wind during night, accompanied by clear sky and stability in upper air,” the forecaster told Gulf News.
“Geographically speaking, winter starts in the UAE on December 21. But climate-wise, it starts earlier, maybe during the second half of November,” he added.
Temperatures have dropped from the 40 degrees Celsius mark since last week. On Monday, the mercury hovered between 31C and 35C.
“We are now in the transitional season from summer to winter, which in [climatology] is called autumn. According to this, the temperatures right now are normal,” he said.
The first month of autumn will see a three-degree drop in temperature, and one to two degree drops later.
The forecaster said residents should still take extra caution on the roads on Tuesday as foggy conditions are still on the cards.
Chances of foggy conditions persist on Wednesday and Thursday as well. Fog usually forms either before or after dawn but also dissipates by 9am, in some cases by midday.
Satellite imagery of the mist and fog formation on Monday showed fog blanketing most parts of Dubai, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah and parts of Abu Dhabi.
Visibility was reduced to 50 metres in Liwa and Sweihan while it dropped to 100 metres at Al Maktoum International Airport, Al Minhad, and Dubai.
