- The Arabian Peninsula already suffers from the most extreme heat on the planet.
- Climate Chance and Land-Cover and Land-Use Change are amplifying extreme heat across the Arabian Peninsula, impacting human health.
- Fusing remote-sensed LCLUC and climate data with weather models can improve extreme heat forecasting and climate projections.
- NASA’s Earth Observation platforms can enable the operationalization of monitoring and forecasting of extreme heat and guide adaptations to reduce harm to improve health.
How is land cover/use changed?
The Arabian Peninsula has witnessed a sixfold population increase over the last 50 years, while its growth in wealth, largely due to fossil-fuel extraction, has been even greater. Accompanying these changes has been rapid and large-scale LCLUC in the form of expansion and intensification of urban and agricultural areas [1-2]. At the same time, the duration, frequency, and intensity of extreme heat has increase exponentially across the region due to climate change [3].
Figure 1: Average annual increase in the number of days per year where the maximum wet bulb globe temperature (WBGTmax) was greater than 32°C for the Arabian Peninsula, with urban boundaries overlayed (blue).
Why is this Important?
Across the Arabian Peninsula, vulnerable populations, such as migrant workers, are already succumbing to the impacts of extreme heat, with high rates of fatalities documented during heat waves in the region [4]. As we continue to warm the planet, we need better information about interactions between LCLUC and climate change to reduce health impacts to such populations.
How satellite data are being used to inform decision making and Earth Action?
NASA Earth Observation satellite data are enabling the near-real time monitoring of LCLUC change processes and support climate and weather modeling for the Arabian Peninsula. When integrated with population and health data, NASA EO data will aid in direct understanding of how extreme heat harms people and where adaptation strategies can best reduce impacts.
[1] Elhacham & Alpert. (2021). Sci. Tot. Environ. [2] Alqurashi & Kumar. (2017). Geocarto Int. [3] Raymond et al. (2020). Sci Adv. [4] Pradhan et al. (2019). Cardiol.
Project Investigator: Cascade Tuholske, Montana State University, MT, USA; Email: cascade.tuholske1@montana.edu The opinions expressed are solely the PI's and do not reflect NASA's or the US Government's views.