Where is the world's hottest city?

Kuwait City, Karachi and the Iranian city of Ahvaz all experience some of the highest temperatures in the world. Such extreme heat, combined with poor air quality and planning, can have grave effects, especially for their poorest residents

On Thursday afternoon, the temperature in Kuwait City hit 50C. That's very hot, but not any kind of record - the record for the city, set last summer, is over 52C. Between June and August, the average daily high is about 44C. During these searing-hot summer months, most Kuwaitis take refuge from the heat in air-conditioned offices and houses, leaving them only to drive to air-conditioned shopping malls in air-conditioned cars. In a city virtually devoid of shaded outdoor spaces, the mall is the only public space people go to walk around.

Sharifa Alshalfan, an architect based in Kuwait City, explains that Kuwaitis spend all of their time indoors. "It's almost as if the outdoors doesn't exist," she says. "That's the mindset of people here."