Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia is unlikely to be affected by the heatwave phenomenon prevailing in countries in South Asia, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia currently, according to a researcher at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN)."Geographically, Indonesia is safe from the heatwave phenomenon," Eddy Hermawan, a researcher at BRIN's Center for Climate and Atmosphere Research, said when contacted in Jakarta on Thursday
He explained that the countries facing heatwaves currently are located in the Northern Hemisphere and whose territories are dominated by landmasses, such as India and Vietnam.
Hermawan said that such a phenomenon is not new to those countries and they tend to experience it when the sun moves northward. Meanwhile, he added, Indonesia is a maritime country whose location is more inclined toward the Southern Hemisphere.
It takes a longer time for oceans to absorb and release heat, which makes maritime countries less susceptible to being exposed to the heatwaves currently experienced by countries in the Northern Hemisphere.
"The sun is leaving the Equator and moving to the Northern Hemisphere. Since India's Gujarat and Hyderabad regions are barren and have limited water, their lands are accumulating the heat of the sun," he explained.
In contrast to oceans, land areas absorb and release heat faster, he said. Meanwhile, the absorption of the sun's heat is more optimal in such areas when the sun is in the north, he added.
The researcher then underlined that heat is distributed evenly on the entire planet. However, land and maritime countries respond to the heat differently based on their respective territorial characteristics, he said.
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He further said that Indonesia has never recorded heatwaves in its history and noted that some Indonesian regions have only experienced temporary surges of heat, with temperatures reaching 40–42 degrees Celsius.
"Are heat waves dangerous? Of course, they are dangerous to land countries, but not to Indonesia," he added.