What is the difference between hot air masses and heat waves?

Arab weather - Heat waves are considered harmful weather phenomena that cause losses in both the agricultural and economic sectors, in addition to their impact on the health aspect and daily activities of living organisms, but not every hot air mass amounts to a heat wave, so what is the difference between a hot air mass And the heat wave?

First, what is the hot air mass?

A hot air mass is defined as a large, huge mass of air over a vast geographical area that has homogeneous characteristics and qualities in terms of clearly higher temperatures than the general rates, but in order for the hot air mass to qualify as a heat wave, it must meet several conditions, not every mass Hot air is considered a heat wave in the scientific sense, and these conditions differ from one place to another.

What is a heat wave according to the World Meteorological Organization?

The World Meteorological Organization recommended that the term “heat wave” be used to refer to the weather when maximum temperatures exceed 5 degrees Celsius above their normal climatic averages for more than five consecutive days, but this definition does not apply to all countries.

• Classification of heat waves in the Levant

The conditions for classifying hot air masses as heat waves in the Levant region differ from those recommended by the World Meteorological Organization, so the weather condition is called a “heat wave” in the Levant if temperatures exceed their normal rates of 4-6 degrees Celsius for a certain period of time For 3 consecutive days or more, the heat waves intensify if there is a shallow seasonal depression.

• Classification of heat waves in Jordan

However, some countries, including Jordan, adopt specific thermal values to classify heat waves away from climatic rates. For example, when the average winter temperature in the capital Amman reaches 12 degrees Celsius, and there is a rise in temperatures to 16 degrees Celsius for three days, this is definitely not considered a heat wave. , because 16 degrees Celsius as a maximum temperature is considered one of the cold values, especially in the presence of active winds and cloudy atmospheres. Therefore, the weather condition is classified as a heat wave when temperatures are more than 35 degrees Celsius for 3 consecutive days.

• Classification of heat waves in the Arabian Peninsula

As for the Arabian Peninsula, there is another perspective in classifying the hot air masses as heat waves, because the climatic rates in those areas are naturally very high and the extremely hot weather is very normal, as the regions of the Arabian Gulf, the Arabian Peninsula and the Saharan regions are among the hottest regions of the world throughout The year in which the temperature reaches during the summer, especially in southern Iraq, Kuwait, northeastern Saudi Arabia, and the interior desert parts of the Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman.

Hot weather in these areas is considered normal, as we mentioned above, and the name of a heat wave is not called unless the temperature approaches fifty degrees Celsius or more, and thus exceeds its rates between 3-5 degrees Celsius.

• Classification of heat waves and foreign countries

As for foreign countries, some countries adopt certain temperatures for a period of time so that the general state of the atmosphere is classified as a heat wave, as the heat wave in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg is the period in which the maximum temperature exceeds 25 degrees Celsius for five consecutive days, or when the temperature exceeds The maximum temperature is 30 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days, and in Denmark a heat wave occurs when the maximum temperature exceeds 28 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days and includes 50% of parts of the country.

In conclusion, it must be noted that not every heat air mass is a heat wave unless conditions are met that differ from one country to another. The temperatures may be within their normal range and less than the classification of a heat wave and we feel that it is a heat wave.