The recent air temperature rise in Kuwait

Recently, there is increasing concern in Kuwait regarding the frequent occurrences of harsh climate conditions with summer air temperature exceeding the 50°C mark. In particular, in the last 20 years, the maximum yearly temperature is persistently exceeding its mean value for the whole recorded period.In an effort to explain this phenomenon, a study was made on the surface air temperature records for the past three decades measured at Kuwait International Airport and at a nearby coastal station at Ras Al-Khafja. The analyses have demonstrated that the airport weather station is more influenced by urbanization than Ras Al-Khafja.The linear trend of the air temperature data for both stations consistently showed a cooling period until 1972, followed by a warming period with temperature increases in the range of 0.03–0.08°C yr⁻¹. This warming trend is believed to be partly due to global climate change and the rest is due to man-induced local change in climate caused by urbanization. The urban warming appears to be both a daytime and night-time phenomenon, with maximum, mean and minimum temperatures showing a considerable increase. It is estimated that urban warming accounts for 25% of the maximum temperature increase.