The Al-Ujairi Scientific Center announced that Kuwait will experience noticeable temperature declines once the Suhail season starts on August 24, immediately after the current Kulaibin period ends. This season spans 52 days and concludes on October 14, during which daytime highs are expected to stay below 50 degrees Celsius while nighttime conditions turn milder. The center added in its statement that humidity will persist at high levels, particularly along the coast, and rainfall could occur whenever moisture levels rise further.
According to the center, key markers of Suhail’s arrival include overall weather cooling and a break from extreme heat, driven by southeast winds that temper the prevailing desert gusts and allow the ground to lose stored warmth. These shifts promote greater atmospheric humidity, the appearance of leafy vegetation, longer daytime shadows, morning dew formation and a gradual reduction in both water and air temperatures. The center noted that the sun will also begin tilting southward after remaining nearly overhead during peak summer, producing shorter days and extended nights.
The center reported that the Suhail star, also known as Canopus, typically becomes visible in Kuwaiti skies starting September 4, 2026, based on consistent dawn observations gathered each year by local astronomers. This astronomical event follows the season’s meteorological onset by roughly two weeks. Visibility of the star has served as a traditional seasonal signal across the Arabian Peninsula for generations.
Kuwait Meteorological Department figures show that average maximum temperatures during the preceding Al-Kulaibin window from August 11 to 23 range between 45 and 46 degrees Celsius, although a record 51.3 degrees was logged at the international airport on August 20, 1998. The department describes this phase as featuring dominant light easterly and southeast winds that often carry high moisture from the Gulf, creating exhausting conditions when the air is still. Thunderstorms and rain remain possible but occur only rarely, with occasional cloud cover.
The Al-Ujairi Scientific Center described Suhail as one of the earliest seasons in the traditional Arab solar calendar, marking a transition away from the vertical sun angles of midsummer toward cooler angles of incidence. In previous years the center has issued comparable forecasts that aligned with observable drops in extreme heat and the onset of more varied weather patterns. Such seasonal markers also correspond with shifts long associated with regional agriculture and environmental changes.
Data from the meteorological department further indicate that wet periods can extend irregularly through August and into October, sometimes lasting up to 20 consecutive days in historical patterns. These intervals frequently coincide with the wind shifts the center highlighted for the Suhail season. The combined meteorological and astronomical indicators provide Kuwait residents with advance notice of changing conditions after weeks of intense summer heat.
