Temperature Trends and Distribution in the Arabian Peninsula

Abstract

Problem statement: Temperature trend’s investigation is important for proper water resources management and urban planning. This study aims to investigate trends and distribution of temperature in the past thirty years for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), which represents about 86% of the Arabian Peninsula’s area. Approach: The trend in the temperature time series, including the recorded maximum, average and minimum daily values, were analyzed using non-parametric statistics. These were Mann-Kendall tau coefficient and Sen’s slope estimator. Results: (1): The study showed a warming trend through 9 months of the year except in November to January where non-significant cooling trends were observed. (2): The most significant warming trend appears in the summer months of June, August and September around the central region of KSA. (3) Spatially, The northwestern and southern regions were the least affected by the warming trend. Conclusion: The study concluded that KSA as well as the Arabian Peninsula are suffering from a considerable warming temperature trend, which is an important issue to be considered for rural development and water resources management.