ENGLISH/INGLIŻ

A third heat wave is just round the corner for the Maltese Islands. A ridge of high pressure developing across the central Mediterranean will drag another plume of hot to very hot air from north Africa towards our region in the coming days. August 2021 is on course to become one of the hottest Augusts ever experienced across the Maltese Islands. Starting on Monday 9/8, and lasting for just under a week, maximum temperatures will be at or above 37°C. Minimum temperatures will be in the region of 26°C to 29°C. This will push sea surface temperatures further up, as it edges closer to reaching a record-breaking 30°C. The wind will blow at light to moderate speeds, from a predominantly northwesterly direction. This will help mitigate the heat along the coast. The first half of August is statistically the hottest part of summer locally. Since it coincides with the feast of Saint Lawrence, the locals often refer to this period of hot weather as ‘il-ħruq ta’ San Lawrenz’. Many viewers are asking us two questions at the moment:

  • Will temperatures cool down in the second half of August? Inevitably, the hottest temperatures will be behind us then. Having said that, we expect the temperatures to remain significantly hotter than average throughout the month. The extremely warm sea will increase levels of humidity across the islands, leading to even more suffocating real-feel temperatures.
  • Is there a hint of the first rain? No, there is no sign of any imminent first rain. It’s way too early to even be talking about that. It is likely though, that when it does happen, it will be intense.

 

MALTI/MALTESE

It-tielet mewġa ta’ sħana tinsab wara l-bieb għal Gżejjer Maltin. Firxa ta’ pressjoni għolja se tiżviluppa madwar iċ-ċentru tal-Mediterran. Din se terġa ġġib magħha massa ta’ arja sħuna ħafna minn l-Afrika ta’ fuq lejn ir-reġjun tagħna. B’dan ir-ritmu, Awwissu 2021 jaf ikun l-aktar wieħed jaħraq li qatt esperjenzajna fil-Gżejjer Maltin. Għandha tibda nhar it-Tnejn 9/8, u se tkopri ftit anqas minn ġimgħa. L-ogħla temperaturi se jkun ta’ 37°C jew ogħla, filwaqt li dawk minimi se jkunu fir-reġjun ta’ 26°C sa 29°C. Din se twassal biex it-temperatura tal-wiċċ tal-baħar tkompli togħla, biex b’hekk toqrob aktar lejn ir-rekord ta’ 30°C. Ir-riħ se jkun ħafif għal moderat mill-Majjistral fil-maġġoranza tal-ħin. Din se tgħin biex ittaffi xi ftit is-sħana lejn il-kosta. L-ewwel nofs ta’ Awwissu huwa statistikament l-aktar parti sħunu tas-sajf, u peress li jaħbat mal-festa ta’ San Lawrenz ħafna jafuh bħala ‘l-ħruq ta’ San Lawrenz’. Ħafna segwaċi qed jistaqsuna żewġ mistoqsijiet partikolari bħalissa:

  • Meta se tiffriska xi daqsxejn it-temperature? Bla dubju ta’ xejn, l-aktar temperaturi estremi se jkunu għaddew sat-tieni nofs ta’ Awwissu. Minkejja dan, xorta waħda nibqgħu nistennew li t-temperaturi jkomplu jkunu ħafna ogħla mill-medja. Il-baħar sħun ħafna se jgħin biex tkompli tielgħa l-livell ta’ l-umdita’ u b’hekk l-arja tkun tinħass ħafna aktar sħuna u mdellka.
  • Hemm xi ħjiel ta’ l-ewwel xita? Le, ma hemm l-ebda sinjal ta’ xita. Għadu kmieni wisq biex nitkellmu dwar dan. Iċ-ċans huwa li meta tiġi, din se tkun intensa.