August Was Hottest on Record in Parts of Uzbekistan

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — August 2026 was significantly warmer than the climatic norm in Uzbekistan and was also exceptionally dry.

According to Uzhydromet, the average monthly air temperature was 1.9–3°C above the long-term average across most of the country. In Bukhara region and parts of Navoi, Kashkadarya and Surkhandarya regions, the deviation reached 3.1–3.6°C.

In most parts of the country, such a hot August was recorded for the first time in the entire history of meteorological observations. In most areas of Kashkadarya and Surkhandarya regions, the month ranked among the three warmest Augusts on record.

At the same time, absolute temperature records were not broken in most regions. During the hottest days, temperatures across most of the country reached 39–41°C. In the north, south and desert areas, temperatures locally reached 42–44°C, while Termez recorded 45°C.

In the area of the Tuyamuyun Reservoir, the maximum August temperature matched the historical record at 44.3°C. New absolute August temperature records were set in Nurafshon and the Western Arnasay area, at 41.5°C and 41.4°C, respectively.

In Tashkent, the maximum temperature reached 40.2°C, compared with the absolute August record of 43.1°C set in 1944. In Nukus, temperatures rose to 42°C, against the historical maximum of 46.8°C.

The maximum temperature reached 41.9°C in Bukhara, 42.2°C in Navoi, 42.0°C in Karshi and 45.1°C in Termez.

Across most of the country, the number of days when temperatures reached at least 40°C ranged from one to six. In Bukhara, Navoi, Kashkadarya and Surkhandarya regions, there were 7–14 such days. In the Mubarek area and Termez, temperatures reached 40°C or higher for 18–21 days.

August was also the driest month of the summer. In most parts of Uzbekistan, there was no rainfall at all, or the amount did not exceed 0.0–0.4 mm.

In some mountainous areas, rain fell two to four times, but total monthly precipitation there amounted to only 1–4 mm.

Only at some mountain weather stations in Tashkent and Ferghana regions did precipitation reach 6–12 mm, which was also below the norm.

Above-normal precipitation was recorded only in parts of the Ustyurt Plateau and the extreme northern part of the Kyzylkum Desert. The Jaslyk weather station recorded 11 mm of precipitation against a norm of 4 mm, while the Akbaytal station recorded 2 mm against a norm of 1.7 mm.

Wind speeds increased to 12–17 m/s in some parts of the country. In certain areas, strong winds were accompanied by dust storms and blowing snow-like surface dust.

Overall, the summer of 2026 was also hot. The average seasonal air temperature was 1.2–2.6°C above normal. Across most of Uzbekistan, the summer ranked as the second-hottest on record, while in some regions it was the warmest summer in the entire history of meteorological observations.

The most significant deviation from the norm occurred in August. However, the highest maximum temperatures of the entire summer were recorded in July. In the middle of summer, temperatures reached 43–45°C across most of the country and 46–50°C in the south and desert areas.

According to Uzhydromet, temperatures during that period approached the highest levels recorded throughout the observation period, while new temperature records were set in a number of regions.

Thus, the summer of 2026 continued the trend of rising temperatures during summer seasons in Uzbekistan. At the same time, precipitation remained uneven: overall, the country received less rainfall than normal during the summer, although some areas in every region recorded above-average precipitation.

June made the largest contribution to the seasonal rainfall total, with rain occurring relatively frequently during the month.

However, precipitation was highly localized and uneven. Even within the same region, rainfall intensity could range from traces of rain to heavy downpours.