Meteorological phenomenon.

August 2023 is expected to be the second driest August in Pakistan in the last 63 years, a startling 66% less than the historical average in rainfall. This is a worrying meteorological phenomenon.

Based on information gathered by the Met office, this discovery puts it slightly below the record-breaking dry spell of August 1993, when a meagre 16.4 mm of rain fell over the entire month.

The effects of the drought have been very bad in some parts of Pakistan. August of this year was the driest on record for Balochistan, while the driest Augusts on record for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab were only topped in aridity by the notorious August of 1993.

Remarkably, Lower Dir emerged as the wettest location with a total monthly rainfall of 231.0 mm, while Gujranwala in Punjab scored the wettest day of the month with 102.0 mm of rain on August 5.

In August 2023, there was also an increase in temperature; the national mean monthly temperature reached 30.44 °C, which was 0.19 °C higher than the average. The average daytime temperature was 36.34 °C, while the average nighttime temperature was 0.20 °C higher.

This unusually dry August has important ramifications because August normally provides over 19% of the country’s yearly rainfall and almost 40% of the monsoon. Experts caution that in the impacted areas, the drought may cause problems for agriculture and result in a shortage of water.

Forecasters anticipate more hot and muggy weather for the majority of Pakistan’s plains, with sporadic showers, thunderstorms, and wind in a few spots, such as upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Potohar, Islamabad, northeast Punjab, Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan.