Kota Kinabalu: The current hot weather affecting the country is part of Malaysia’s normal monsoon cycle, although its intensity may be influenced by global factors such as climate change and prevailing atmospheric conditions.
Universiti Malaysia Sabah’s (UMS) Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities senior lecturer Lindah Roziani Jamru (
pic) said the heat is due to Malaysia approaching the end of the Northeast Monsoon and entering the inter-monsoon phase.
She said cloud cover and rainfall distribution decrease during this period, leading to rising temperatures in most areas.
She said the situation is fundamentally normal within Malaysia’s monsoon cycle, but the level of heat experienced may be intensified by additional factors such as global climate change and current atmospheric phenomena.
She added that global phenomena such as El Niño play a significant role in influencing local weather patterns.
She said El Niño typically brings hotter and drier conditions due to reduced rainfall, which in turn raises temperatures in Malaysia.
She said a condition is only classified as a heatwave if temperatures exceed 37 degrees Celsius for at least three consecutive days.
She said prolonged hot weather could have serious long-term impacts on water resources, agriculture and human health, including reduced dam levels, disruption to crop yields and increased risks of dehydration, heatstroke and heat-related illnesses.
