Climate, Mosquitoes and Malaria

Students have been sitting their end of year exams throughout the last week, and so most of my week has been spent either invigilating, marking exams or writing reports. In short, it has been a very boring and tedious week - but at least everything is now complete and I can forget about teaching and just enjoy the long summer holidays!!

Now the weather is becoming almost absurdly hot in Khartoum, I am actually looking forward to a mild and wet English summer. Temperatures today have been up to 43 degrees and readers from England may be amazed to learn that since I arrived on 9^th January, there has not been a single drop of rain anywhere in Khartoum. However, both the temperature and lack of rain is quite normal, as illustrated on the climate graph which I have included as a change from the usual photographs. I should point out this graph was found online and is not my own creation.

I included a climate graph in the recent year 9 exam (but not this one), and was slightly disappointed that so few students were able to interpret the diagram, despite the amount of time we spent on the subject in class. However, I am sure most follows of this blog can see the average maximum temperature is above 30 degrees all year round and above 40 degrees throughout May and June. Of course maximum temperatures can get much closer to 50 on occasions. Average temperatures are also at their highest in May and June, suggesting this is usually the hottest time of the year. (Technically, this is the average average - if that makes sense!)

This may sound strange, but when above about 38 degrees it actually becomes quite difficult to assess the temperature. In other words, the heat feels exactly the same at 45 degrees, and it drains all your energy. One of the few benefits of such extreme heat is the lack of mosquitoes, which were such a nuisance when I first arrived. Now, there seem to be very few mosquitoes, even at dusk and dawn when they are normally most active. This is quite fortunate for me, as I recently ran out of the anti-malaria tablets which I brought from England. Of course, it is possible to purchase anti-malaria tablets in Khartoum, but the risk at this time of year seems to be so low that I will just hope for the best from now on – but obviously I will still apply insect repellent if out at dusk (especially if I am near the Nile).

If interested, the malaria tablets I have been taking are ‘doxycycline’, which do not have any nasty side effects. As they contain antibiotics, they can also offer some protection against other illnesses. However, the only drawback is you have to remember to take one every day, or the treatment is useless.

The climate graph suggests there may be some rain in July and August (around 50mm), and unsurprisingly, this coincides with a drop in temperatures. So I am hoping that when I return to Khartoum at the end of July, the temperatures may be slightly more bearable (but perhaps that is just wishful thinking).