Stepping outside during the summer often leads to an immediate groan, as if you suddenly found yourself stuck in a sauna. But for people living in southwest Iran along the Persian Gulf, conditions in late July went beyond the level of usual summer whining: on July 30-31, staying outside for a prolonged period could have led to heat stroke and death.
Summer temperatures in Iran can routinely top 100°F, but 100°+ temperatures were not what made this event so remarkable and so potentially dangerous. The event was not the “dry heat” that people in the United States associate with the desert Southwest. Instead, the scorching temperatures were accompanied by extremely humid conditions, which give the human body even less ability to cool itself off.
In the coastal city of Bandar Mahshahr on July 30 at 2:30pm and 4:30pm local time, the temperature reached 113°F and 111°F. The dew point temperatures (the temperatures to which the atmosphere would need to cool to trigger condensation of the water vapor in the air) were 86°F and 88°F, respectively. At 3:30PM, the dew point reached 90°F! For reference, here in the United States, a summer day with temperatures in the mid 90s and a dew point in the mid 70s would feel highly uncomfortable. A dew point higher than the upper 80s is, simply put, ridiculous—even for the Persian Gulf.
Sourced through Scoop.it from: jpratt27.wordpress.com
