Oman’s mountains and plains turned green due to the moderate weather of the Khareef (monsoon) season which brought about drizzle and light rains.
Most coastal wilayats and the stretch of land from Dhalkut in Western Dhofar to Mirbat on the East usually experience wet weather during this time of the year as the sun goes directly overhead of the Tropic of Cancer.
The Governorate of Dhofar’s weather during this period, which begins on June 21st, becomes more intense in mountainous areas facing monsoon winds than in the plains
The monsoon occurs due to the difference between the temperature of sea water and the temperature on land in the summer. Due to the Earth’s rotation, air slants towards the equator in a Southwesterly direction in the Northern hemisphere and in a Northwesterly direction in the Southern hemisphere.
The temperature of sea water drops along coastal areas in Dhofar during this time of the year due to the rise of cold currents from the seabed, coinciding with a constant blowing of Southwesterly winds loaded with large quantities of water vapor.
When these winds hit the mountains, this causes the air loaded with water vapor to go up, condense and form low-altitude clouds.
The monsoon brings about fog in the Arabian Sea close to the coast in Dhofar. Due to active Southwesterly winds, the fog moves across the land causing low surface visibility (which extends to a mere 1,000 metres), as well as rough seas, with wave heights ranging between 3 to 5 metres along the coast of Dhofar Governorate and the Governorate of Al Wusta.
The wave height decreases gradually towards Ras Al Hadd in the Wilayat of Sur.
Rainfall averages 50 millimeters in Salalah City during the monsoon season. Most of the rains fall in July and August, averaging 120 millimeters in central mountainous areas.
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