Tigris-Euphrates
Weather Statistics
Facts about southern Iraq and Ancient Sumer
by James W. Bell © 2002-3
Temperature Ranges
(in degrees Fahrenheit)
at Babylon at Basra
January 21º to 75º 24º to 81º
February 26º to 82º 31º to 84º
March 33º to 96º 40º to 92º
April 42º to 105º 53º to 100º
May 58º to 115º 60º to 114º
June 61º to 121º 70º to 111º
July 60º to 119º 71º to 114º
August 63º to 121º 69º to 114º
September 57º to 116º 60º to 109º
October 46º to 104º 53º to 101º
November 27º to 91º 36º to 92º
December 19º to 81º 30º to 77º
Hot weather begins about May and continues though September. By November, the weather is cool and then turns cold December through February, especially in the northern part of the country where temperatures often dip below freezing.
Winds and Precipitation
The months of March and April bring occasional thunder and sandstorms. The prevailing wind is from the north with the shamal coming from the northwest. The shamal starts around mid-June and blows intermittently for some forty days with a velocity that reaches as high as forty miles an hour. It dries the air and brings short term relief from the summer’s heat.
The east wind brings high temperatures while the south wind brings dust. Sandstorms are most common in the spring.
Some of the shallow lakes in the southern part of the country are shaped by the direction and force of the wind, and can expand or contract a mile or two because of it. These changes may not take place gradually. There is a case known where the water of a lake moved forward at a rate of 36 to 45 feet a minute when blown by a strong wind.
The rainfall in the southern part of the country is about 6½ inches, of which 5½ fall between October and April. The rain usually comes in sudden, short-lived storms of great violence, accompanied by hail and strong winds that cause much damage.
The End
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