The Saudi Arabia (SA) climate varies greatly, depending on the geography and the season. According to K ppen and Geiger, the climates of SA is “desert climate”. The analysis of the seasonal rainfall detects that spring and winter seasons have the highestrainfall incidence, respectively. Through the summer,small quantities of precipitation are observed, while autumn received more precipitation more than summer season considering the total annual rainfall. In all seasons, the SW area receives rainfall, with a maximum in spring, whereas in the summer season, the NE and NW areas receive very little quantities of precipitation. The Rub Al-Khali (the SE region) is almost totally dry. The maximum amount of annual rainfall does not always happen at the highest elevation. Therefore, the elevation is not the only factor in rainfall distribution.A great inter-annual change in the rainfall over the SA for the period (1978–2009) is observed. In addition, in the same period, a linear decreasing trend is found in the observed rainfall, whilst in the recent past (1994–2009) a statistically significant negative trend is observed. In the Southern part of the Arabian Peninsula (AP) and along the coast of the Red Sea, it is interesting to note that rainfall increased, whilst it decreased over most areas of SA during the 2000–2009 decade, compared to 1980–1989.Statistical and numerical models are used to predict rainfall over Saudi Arabia (SA). The statistical models based on stochastic models of ARIMA and numerical models based on Providing Regional Climates for Impact Studies of Hadley Centre (PRECIS). Climate and its qualitative character and quantified range of possible future changes are investigated. The annual total rainfall decreases in most regions of the SA and only increases in the south. The summertime precipitation will be the highest between other seasons over the southern, the southwestern provinces and Asir mountains, while the wintertime rainfall will remain the lowest.The climate in the SA is instructed by the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and other circulations such as centers of high and low pressure, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and SOI. Strength and oscillation of subtropical jet stream play a big role in pulling hot, dry air masses of SA.

Sea surface temperature (SST) is an important oceanic variable that impacts regional and global climate. This paper examines the relation of summer (June to August) surface air temperature (SAT) variability over Saudi Arabia (1948–2013) with SST over the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. The SAT over Saudi Arabia shows an abrupt increase around the 1980s (i.e. 1986). Partial correlations between SAT and different SST indices indicate that the Indo-Pacific warm pool (IPWP) has a more significant effect on SAT than does the tropical North Atlantic (TNA), tropical South Atlantic (TSA) or Western Hemisphere warm pool (WHWP). Hence, the change in IPWP SST can be considered as one of the factors linked to increase SAT over Saudi Arabia. The only significant relationship between El Niño and SAT is found in the Niño 4 region. Moreover, interactions between the tropical Atlantic meridional gradient mode and SAT are undetectable in the summer season, indicating that the TNA and TSA may have effectively independent roles on SAT over Saudi Arabia. The tropical Atlantic, through TNA and TSA, may influence the IPWP SST which modifies the strength of the Indian monsoon low, and in turn, has a strong influence on Saudi Arabia SAT variability.

This work examines the potential of some of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries (GCC) (Saudi Arabia (KSA), the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar (QA), Bahrain (BH), Oman (OM)), Yemen (YE), Iraq (IQ), and Jordan (JO) to use their abundant solar radiation to generate electricity through PV technology. The study is structured to help decision-makers access the necessary data related to the status of solar-energy infrastructure and power production in the study region. The study investigates current efforts to establish PV technology and the challenges hindering the development of this technology. These efforts and challenges are then benchmarked against their status in Australia, which has climate and landscape conditions similar to those of the countries in the study region. It was found that Australia is successfully adopting solar energy in households and industrial locations despite its historical reliance on fossil fuels for energy production. This offers a potential avenue for replicating the Australian model of PV development in the study region. This work also addresses the effect of natural and anthropogenic aerosols on the performance of the PV panels. Meanwhile, it also proposes a conceptual model to help local governments and decision-makers in adopting solar-energy projects in the study region. Additionally, a preliminary carbon-footprint analysis of avoided emissions from PV energy utilization compared to national grid intensity was performed for each country. Findings show that the countries in the study region have great potential for using solar energy to gradually replace fossil fuels and protect the environment. It is observed that more hours of daylight and clear-to-scattered cloud coverage help increase solar irradiance near the ground all year around. Dust and aerosol loadings, however, were found to greatly reduce solar irradiance over the GCC area, especially during large dust events. Despite the high potential for harvesting solar energy in the study region, only a handful of PV plants and infrastructural facilities have been established, mostly in the KSA, the UAE, and Jordan. It was found that there is a critical need to put in place regulations, policies, and near-future vision to support solar energy generation and reduce reliance on fossil fuels for electricity production.

The summer season (June–July–August) surface air temperatures “SATs” over Saudi Arabia and its associated with the atmospheric circulation cells were identified and analyzed using the NCEP–NCAR reanalyses and the NOAA extended reconstructed sea surface temperature (SST) datasets from 1948 to 2016. The pressure vertical velocity and divergent wind were utilized to determine the atmospheric circulation cells such as Hadley, Walker and Ferrel cells. Possible mechanisms associated with changes in Saudi Arabia summer SAT were investigated, with particular focus on the uppermost and lowermost summers. Changes in SAT are mainly linked to the significant changes in the meridional and zonal atmospheric circulations. Partial correlations between SAT and atmospheric circulation showed that the effect of the Hadley and Walker circulations on the SAT was significant. There is no obvious connection between either the Hadley East Pacific circulation or the Ferrel circulation and SAT. Moreover, there is no dependency between summer SAT and the Atlantic Hadley and Atlantic Walker circulations could be detected in the summer season. The Hadley circulation may affect the Indian monsoon depression, whereas the Walker circulation has less effect. Also, a strong relationship between the Indian‐Pacific warm pool (IPWP) and both the Hadley and Walker circulations were found. Simultaneously, IPWP SST influenced Indian Monsoon depression. Therefore, the Hadley circulation, Walker circulation, and IPWP all play key roles in the displacement and intensity of the Indian monsoon, which in turn strongly influences SAT variability over Saudi Arabia during summertime.