DESERT STORM WEATHER 17 JANUARY-2 MARCH 1991

File: aabva_85.txt
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Total Pages: 106
DESERT STORM 23 February 1991

General Weather.  High pressure centered over the eastern
Arabian Peninsula moved southeastward into the Rub al Khali by
2000Z. Even though the frontal system dissipated as it moved
across northwest Saudi Arabia, it still caused isolated light showers
and duststorms. The subtropical jet stream brought middle and
high clouds eastward over the area after 0900Z. Low pressure
formed over the Red Sea.

Area of Interest. Fog reduced visibilities along the central Persian
Gulf to about 1,000 meters between 0100 and 0400Z and re-
formed after 2000Z. Scattered to broken low and middle clouds
with light isolated rainshowers reduced visibilities to 10 km along
the weak low-pressure system in the west.  Duststorms caused
4,000-meter visibilities in the Syrian and Nafud Deserts between
0900 and 1700Z. Middle and high clouds produced 10,000-foot
ceilings over northwestern Saudi Arabia after 0900Z. Smoke from
the Kuwaiti oilfields had reached Qatar; although concentrated at
10,000-12,000, feet the smoke mixed with haze at lower levels to
produce 6-km visibilities.

Area of Intense Interest. In the west the low-pressure system
caused scattered to broken clouds at 10,000 feet until about 0600Z,
when they became scattered. By 1200Z, middle and high clouds
began to move into the area south of 31(N. causing broken to
overcast ceilings at 10,000 to 12,000 feet. These clouds were east
of 45(E by 1900Z. Between 0400 and 1600Z, another band of
middle and high clouds formed along the Iran-Iraq border north of
32( N. Ceilings were about 8,000 feet with tops to 32,000 feet.
Isolated thunderstorms formed over Kuwait by 2000Z, with 2,500-
foot bases and tops to 35,000 feet

Winds were northerly to northwesterly at 10-15 know east of 45( E.
Elsewhere, winds were easterly at 5-10 knots.

Duststorms reduced visibilities to 8 km along the Iraq-Saudi Arabia
border between 0800 and l500Z.  Dense smoke shown in Figure
3-41--covered eastern Kuwait and reduced visibilities generally to
less than 8 km, with isolated cases as low as 1,000 meters.

High temperatures were 13-16( C; lows, 7-13( C.



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