The highest temperature recorded over the country today is 51.6C in Sweihan (Al Ain) at 13:45 UAE local time (0945 GMT)," the National Center of Meteorology said in a post on X, just 0.4C off the overall heat record in the Gulf country.

The meteorology office told AFP the highest ever temperature recorded in the UAE since documentation began in 2003 was reported at 52C on Abu Dhabi's Al Yasat Island in 2010.

The desert nation, a top global oil exporter, lies in one of the planet's hottest regions and one which is particularly vulnerable to climate change.

The temperature in Sweihan -- which lies 97km (60 miles) west of Abu Dhabi -- and of 50.4C a day earlier in the Emirati capital exceeded the previous record for May of 50.2 Celsius recorded in 2009, according to the meteorology office.