Oman town breaks record with hottest 'low' temperature ever

The Omani town of Quriyat has broken a world record, with the highest "low temperature" over a 24-hour period.

Temperatures in Quriyat clocked 49.8 degrees in the daytime, but there wasn't much relief for residents in the Omani coastal town with temperatures only dropping to 42.6 degrees at night.

According to various media sources, this is the highest low temperature recorded in a day, breaking the previous 2011 record of 41.9 degrees, which was also held by an Omani town - Khassab.

Tuesday's record temperature remained for the next 51 hours.

Oman and other Gulf states have been hit by a heatwave this week, with temperatures approaching the 50 degrees mark.

Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters explained more on the site. 

"The hot weather has been caused by a strong upper-level ridge of high pressure that settled in over the Arabian Peninsula beginning on Sunday," he said.

"Quriyat's location on the coast of the Gulf of Oman in the Northern Indian Ocean means that humid marine air keeps the city from cooling off much at night."

This meant that the coastal winds that usually help cool Quriyat were not present to provide some relief for residents.

Temperatures in Oman regularly reach 50 degrees in summer, but enjoys milder winters and sometimes experiences ice and snow in mountain regions.

The Gulf of Oman has some of the warmest waters in the world, with temperatures there reaching 30 degrees.

The south also enjoys a monsoon season in autumn - known as the Khareef - with tourists from across the Gulf heading down to Dhofar to enjoy some rare Arabian rain.