Iraq hit by extreme heat – Temperature reaches 52 degrees Celsius

Extreme weather in Iraq where temperatures reached 52 degrees Celsius (125.6 degrees Fahrenheit) on early Tuesday afternoon, forecasters said.

With a humidity of five percent and winds with a speed of about 9 kilometres (2.6 miles) per hour, temperatures reached 52 degrees Celsius (125.6 degrees Fahrenheit) at Ali Air Base near the city of Nasiriyah in Dhi Qar Governorate. The record temperature was recorded at around 1 p.m. local time.

Others parts of Iraq also experienced extreme heat on Tuesday, including in Al Diwaniyah where forecasters said the temperature could still reach 53 degrees Celsius (127.4 degrees Fahrenheit) later in the day. In Baghdad, the country’s capital, temperatures reached 51 degrees Celsius (123.8 degrees Fahrenheit).

The extreme heat is expected to continue throughout the week in most parts of the country, where many universities and public offices have been closed as a result.

According to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was on September 13, 1922. Temperatures then reached 57.7 degrees Celsius (136 degrees Fahrenheit) in El Azizia, Libya. (IWO/BNO)