🇶🇦Qatar

Qatar occupies a small peninsula (11,571 km²) extending into the Persian Gulf between 24°N and 26°N, entirely within the hyperarid desert belt (Köppen BWh). The landscape consists of flat to gently undulating limestone plains with scattered shallow depressions (rawdhas) that occasionally collect rainwater, reaching a maximum elevation of only 103 m at Qurayn Abu al Bawl in the Jebel Dukhan region.

With no permanent rivers, negligible groundwater recharge, and annual rainfall averaging just 75 mm concentrated in brief winter storms (November–March), Qatar ranks among Earth's most arid nations. The shallow Persian Gulf — averaging 35 m depth with summer sea-surface temperatures exceeding 33°C — creates a uniquely oppressive combination of extreme heat and humidity that pushes wet-bulb temperatures to physiologically dangerous thresholds.

Doha summers are among the world's most extreme: July–August daytime maxima routinely exceed 45°C and have reached 50.4°C (July 2010), while coastal humidity surges above 90% during calm nights when the Persian Gulf moisture blankets the land, producing wet-bulb temperatures above 32°C — the threshold beyond which the human body cannot cool itself through sweating, making extended outdoor work lethal.

The 2021 and 2022 summers saw repeated wet-bulb temperature peaks exceeding the 32°C survivability threshold, during which extended outdoor work became medically dangerous. Winters remain mild and pleasant: December–February daytime highs around 22–25°C, nighttime lows 13–15°C. The northwesterly shamal wind, strongest in May–June and again in winter, brings dust storms that reduce visibility to meters and disrupt aviation and maritime operations.

Al Khor, Al Wakrah, and inland Dukhan experience slightly lower humidity but equally scorching summer heat. The November–December 2022 FIFA World Cup represented an exceptional climate-adaptation challenge: Qatar deployed stadium air-conditioning systems and scheduled matches for evening hours to manage heat stress, shifting the tournament from its traditional summer window for the first time in history.

Sea-surface temperatures in the Persian Gulf have risen 1.5–2°C since 1980 — twice the global ocean average — accelerating coral bleaching, threatening fisheries, and amplifying coastal heat stress. Sea-level rise of 3.4 mm/year directly threatens the low-lying Doha Corniche, Pearl-Qatar development, and desalination plant intakes that supply 99% of Qatar's drinking water.

Our archive covers 0 Qatari cities with daily ERA5 reanalysis data going back to 1940.