UAE hit by heavy rain as temperatures edge close to 50ºC

Cloud-seeding aircraft in action with more downpours possible at the weekend

Rain fell in many parts of Al Ain on Monday. Photo: Storm Centre

Heavy rain has been falling in parts of the UAE — despite the onset of summer and temperatures approaching 50ºC in areas.

Downpours mainly affected the east of the country, with the National Centre of Meteorology on Monday reporting heavy showers in parts of Al Ain.

Storm Centre, a popular online channel that tracks extreme weather, posted footage showing motorists navigating downpours, with another showing a man standing under dark dies amid high winds and driving rain in Mezaira.

The NCM said there was also a chance of showers on Friday and into the weekend.

“[It will be] hot during daytime, dusty and partly cloudy at times, and some low clouds will appear over [the] eastern coast by morning, with a chance of rainy convective clouds formation eastward and southward,” the forecast said.

The UAE's cloud seeding planes — which try to induce more rain from a cloud — have been in action over the past few days to take advantage of the conditions.

These aircraft usually fire salt flares into the cloud as salt naturally attracts water.

“When we have clouds, then we order the aircraft to fly to [conduct] seeding missions,” a forecaster told The National.

It comes as temperatures approach 50°C in parts of the UAE this week but rainfall during the scorching summer is not uncommon, the forecaster said.

During these months, the monsoon rains from India bring moist air from India across the ocean to the Arabian Peninsula where it then hits the Hajar Mountains.

This causes the “khareef” phenomenon in southern Oman, where summer rains turn the desert green, and downpours in eastern UAE.

Rain in the UAE - in pictures