Can Aden's Temperatures be Reduced?

The capital, Aden, is one of the hottest and most humid cities in the country. The city has gained these features due to its coastal location overlooking the Gulf of Aden and its place in the tropical region. The hot season in this city is a matter of concern for people annually, especially over recent years with the outbreak of war and the collapse of the service system. Particularly, this included electricity which constitutes an ongoing dilemma for residents.

Although Aden's geographical features justify a big part of the causes for its high heat and humidity along with the worldly climate changes and global warming, environment experts believe that the escalation of temperature and humidity levels in Aden over past periods is probably a result of unnatural reasons related to the wrong human activities and the lack of interest in the city's weather.

Experts enumerate the most prominent causes which can be divided into several aspects. This includes growing environmental pollution, the imbalances of the urban planning required for the coastal city to meet the global standards in other similar cities, and the intensified rise in population and slums due to the waves of internal displacement and external immigration. These causes walk along with governmental neglect. 

The experts participating in this report proposed some treatments that could contribute to reducing and mitigating Aden’s weather, especially in summer. 

Each year, the hot season reaches its peak in the middle months, especially between April and September. The temperatures that sometimes exceed 40°c in daylight and the humidity that reaches the level of 73% constitute an onerous duet for people during the hot season, especially with the weak electricity service used by people to cool homes and confront summer.

Aden derives this weather from its geographical location which is defined at 12.47 north latitude. This means that Aden is located within the tropical region. This exposes it to the largest amount of solar rays throughout the year. Its exposed surface is composed of volcanic rocks and surrounded by large water bodies that play an active role in the amounts of received and lost solar rays.

Aden suffers from a paucity of rain. In general, rainfall is few in Aden and it often happens in winter and spring while it is rare in summer. The general rate of average rainfall in the city is 50 mm.

Abdulsalam Al-Jaabi, Undersecretary of the General Authority for Environmental Protection in the Yemeni government, stressed that the temperatures in Aden have climbed over the past decades due to global climate changes. He told "South24" Center: "The main reason for the high temperatures in Aden is its closeness to the equator, but the remarkable rise is due to climate changes".

International climate expert Dr. Abdulqadir Al-Kharaz, former head of the General Authority for Environmental Protection in Yemen, said: "Yemen is among the countries most vulnerable to the global climate change impact". He told "South24 Center": "Over the past period, Yemen witnessed many changes, including high temperatures in summer that compared to the levels of ten years ago".

He added: "There have been changes in the rates of rain levels in the mountainous and desert regions. They increased in the mountainous regions and decreased in the desert regions. The rainy seasons in the coastal regions have changed from summer to winter, which means higher summer temperatures in Aden, Hodeidah, and other coastal areas in the country".