Following a period of severe cold, temperatures in South Africa rose sharply this week. The weather across the country changed dramatically in a very short time, less than a week, from a state resembling an arctic apocalypse to the beginning of summer.
Interestingly, Johannesburg reached unofficial records for both the lowest and highest daily temperatures over eight days. According to forecasts from the South African Weather Service (SAWS), a daytime high of 30 degrees Celsius was expected on Thursday, August 20, which corresponds to record August highs between 28°C and 30°C registered at various stations in the Joburg metro area during the 2015 heatwave.
The forecast maximum temperature for Pretoria on Thursday is also 31 degrees and matches previously recorded records. However, coastal areas remained cool: Cape Town recorded a maximum of only 19°, Gqeberha recorded 18°, and Durban recorded 20°.
Nevertheless, eight days ago, on August 11, Johannesburg unofficially recorded the lowest maximum for August. Although SAWS did not publish data for that day, according to readings from the Or Tambo International Airport weather station, the maximum temperature was only 5°, corresponding to the record 'cold maximum' set on August 1, 2009.
Meanwhile, the absolute lowest daily maximum in Johannesburg was 1.5°, recorded on June 19, 1964, and the lowest minimum temperature ever recorded was -8.2°, registered on June 13, 1979.
SAWS warns that South Africans may face a hotter and drier summer due to the strengthening of El Niño, with inland areas being particularly vulnerable to abnormally high temperatures and heatwaves.
Furthermore, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warns of a greater than 90% probability that a 'very strong' El Niño will develop in late 2026 and early 2027, which could potentially lead to drought in regions such as South Africa.
According to weather station data, the lowest temperature ever recorded in South Africa was -11.2° in Bloemfontein, and the highest was 45.3° in Springton.
In Johannesburg, extreme values of -9.7° and 36.2° were observed, while in Cape Town, the temperature dropped only to -1.9°, yet its highest reading exceeded 40°. Durban has never experienced sub-zero temperatures.