It may well be true that under controlled "scientific" measurement conditions, Iraq's high summer temperatures do not often exceed 125 degrees F, though I recall times during my time there when even the 'official' highs exceeded these levels. However, I certainly know from personal experience that in many conditions to which the troops (and civilians) both Iraqi and foreign are routinely subject the actual temperature in which they work is much higher. These include being in enclosed vehicles or unairconditioned buildings, standing or fighting in the sun, wearing protective gear, or flying in helicopters or fixed wing aircraft. These conditions no doubt do not qualify as 'official' measurements of temperature maxima or enter into meteorological record books, but they are what people - American or Iraqi -- have to operate in there.

"...I certainly know from personal experience that in many conditions to which the troops (and civilians) both Iraqi and foreign are routinely subject the actual temperature in which they work is much higher..."

How does that really change anything? That statement is also true when the temperature is only 90°. Do I now get to claim it reaches 150° in Minneapolis when my car sits in the sun?

People don't need to be told that it's hotter in some conditions than the official temperature. They can infer 130° in the sun when it's 120° in the shade. But reporting 130° heat causes them to infer still higher situational temperatures. That's simply misleading.

For what it's worth, it was my question, and I experienced nothing close to 130­° when I was in Iraq.

From my, limited experience in deserts (multiple training rotations to the mojave and a summer in in Iraq/Kuwait) it all feels about the same once the 115 threshold is broken: MISERABLE!

The hottest "we" measured in Kuwait on the way out in early August was 122 in the direct sunlight. Baghdad was a bit more of a challenge to get an acurate temp because of the urban sprawl factor. I know the outerwalls of the building I worked in retained the heat from the sun well until after dark and you could feel it radiating as you walked to or from work simply adding to the misery.

Remember that story that the right-wingers were all upset about. The one about the GIs running over dogs on the road with tanks or something. On one of their blogs I wrote,"even if its true whats the big deal, cause if you have a dog laying on the road in 120 degree heat, that dog was dead anyway".

Yeah, guys, one way or the other, its still Flipping HOT OUT there! And when one is wearing heavy equipment or in a confined environment with no AC, it feels HOTTER! :-D So what say we all get along, and just agree that Iraq and Kuwait are incredibly hot places to be.

I disagree with your assessment, that people don't need to be told that it's hotter in some conditions than others. You can't understand working in real heat unless you've experienced it.

The difference between sitting in a car in Minneapolis that has been subjected to the sun's rays, and then turning on the AIR CONDITIONER, and actually working in heat without relief from it, is huge.

I know what real heat is, as I work in an open pit copper mine in Arizona, and if there is NO relief from the heat, such as A/C, then you are pretty much FUBAR. It takes a real toll, and it IS accurate to say that you worked in 130* heat all day, regardless of what "actual temperature" is. We have seen temperatures of 127* in a P and H Shovel at the bottom of the pit.

Your time in Iraq was probably spent in some office with an air conditioner running 24/7.

C'mon slateys. I correspond with many of my friends, via email, who are currently fighting in Iraq. These are young men who I grew up with. They say it is hotter than hell. That's all you need to know. So please don't sit there, in your air conditioned setting, and scoff at peolpe saying it's hot over there. It's hotter than hell.

I'm still over in Iraq and we have a calibrated thermometer that measures the outside and inside temp and controls the ac so the more sensitive equipment stays happy. The highest outside reading on our free standing thermometer lead was 134.6f in direct sunlight. It may have been hotter but the thermometer had locked up on us at 134.6f. Add the equipment and vehichles our soldiers have to be in most of the time and I'm sure it seems even hotter then that.

I'm currently deployed in southern Iraq. The "scientific" weather stations set up on both bases/FOBs that I've lived on are regularly over 125F (approx 1.5m above the ground surface, in open areas - full sun) in July and August. The official reported temps never go above 116F. This may have to do with US military rules - if the temps exceed x, no one is supposed to be working outside. (!! ha ha!) The "cheap" and "inaccurate" thermometers generally match each other (used when traveling off base) - in some cases read over 140F. There are plenty of people - troops and civilians - here who rarely get to escape into any sort of A/C - put on anywhere from 30 to 100lbs of kit and sit in a vehicle without A/C, get out of the vehicle and walk around for a few hours ... you get to know the difference between 113F, 122F, and over 130F. It's all hot, but 113F ends up being only uncomfortable, whereas over 120F is truly miserable.

Truth be told: This ubsurd article does not do our men and women in uniform justice. Are you suggesting that our soldiers are not in as much pain and suffering that the media make them out to be? If so, it is pretty sad and irresponsible for you to nitpick at a mere seperation of 6 degrees in order to discredit our leaders and undermine the service of our military. To a layman's eye, one might consider 124 degrees to not be as hot as 130. But as a Marine that has been in Iraq for 2 tours, I will tell you first hand that it makes no difference at all at those temperature. Physically, you are dripping in sweat from head to toe and you may be very dehydrated in a matter of minutes. So heres the truth: This article is a lame attempt to start a controversy where none existed. 124 degrees is within range of 130 as it certainly feels like 140 degrees at times. The writers and the staff that put this on the front page of MSN are incredibly obtuse for using this small difference to incite unnecessary controversy. As if the country is not already divided enough as is.

OFR

Semper Fi, Marine.

First I want to thank you for your service. Then I want to tell you I wish you were home. Lastly, any temp. over 101F is miserable, and I can't imagine the heat, then add packs, weapons, boots, uniforms, building, vehicles and everything else. Our media and others need to debate and deal with the real issues. Once again, thank you and all your fellow military persons who represent us and serve for us. God speed.

Thank you, I was also in Iraq and our "cheap" thermomoter hung on a wooden structure under our cammo netting that we had to shade our motor pool with (cuz they were too cheap to at least provide a roof over a metal frame structure on a cement pad). The reading we had gotten from that and the reading we had from another which was not shaded on another wooden structure, we figure was close to actual. SO the motor pool would say about 122 -126 while the other read 134 in direct sunlight. That was was the hottest day I think we had but wasn't too far from how hot it was and felt until it cooled down for the rainy season.

I think your rite that the other guy who was there was probably in the A/C all day that's why he can say it wasn't so bad. He didn't have to work like a carpenter or mechanic with no shade and most of your gear on. We were lucky when we didn't have to wear tops under flack vests.

I'm sure those mines in Arizona are no joke, so at least you know what is like to work in hot crappie positons. Thanks for your comment. Those who work and patrol and fight in that heat all day agree.

"Yesterday, John McCain told supporters in Iowa that U.S. soldiers are "carrying 40 pounds of body armor in 130-degree temperatures.""

"So, depending on where it's sitting, a surface thermometer can be off by more than 10 degrees. That's why professional meteorologists prefer to measure the temperature in a ventilated location, and never set up their instruments on heat-conducting surfaces like sand, concrete, or asphalt. "

For those of you simple people that don't understand why I have chosen these excerpts from the article, I'll put it in simpler terms.

Step A- Reports claim soldiers are carrying things, and working, in 130 degree weather.

Step B- The article from Idiot McDumbass claims that tempuratures "can be off by more than 10 degrees" if taken on certain surfaces or in certain conditions.

Step C- The author of this article obviously doesn't mean that the thermometers are giving FALSE readings, only readings that differ from readings taken in "well ventilated areas".

Step D- Now it should be easy to take the step to realize that soldiers do indeed actually work, carry, have sex, run, walk, and talk in 130 degree weather.

Step E- If you still don't get it... "professional meteorologists... never set up their instruments on heat-conducting surfaces like sand, concrete, or asphalt." OK, where do the soldiers work? On a cloud? If readings from sand are 20 degrees hotter than readings from the top of a 15 foot pole... won't I be hotter if I'm crawling through the sand? Do tennis players experience higher temps on a tennis court? Is the tempurature that Iraqi soldiers experience actually much higher than the professional meteorological readings? Hell yes.

I've been in Baghdad for a little over 3 months. Three times a week I here a briefing from an Officer assigned to AFWA (Air Force Weather Agency), that's deployed here. Since I've been here they've never "forecasted" or even recorded temperatures above 130. I'd like to know what type of equipment they're using because they must have some "special" stuff that the rest of us don't know about.

The Southern part of Iraq, Basra and An Nasiriya area is the hottest area in Iraq. Over the past summer their average temp was in the high 120s, with lows in the high 90s and lower 100s. Baghdad is considered to be in the Eastern part of Iraq, it's in the second hottest region. Our Average highs are usually 7 or 9 degrees lower than the south. This all according to AFWA.

Personally here I've seen temps on multiple different thermometers hitting 125/126 multiple times. These thermometers weren't touching any surfaces they were suspended in air, in direct sunlight, the closest one maybe 6 inches from a concrete surface. There was plenty of ventilation around them.

I also have friends stationed at Ali AB (Camp Adder) in An Nasiriya. I was told a couple times it had gotten hotter than 130 over there.

I don't buy this BS about inaccurate, nonscientific readings done by the troops. AFWA probably conducts their readings in the shade with a fan sitting on the instrument taking the reading.

The only saving grace about the heat here is, there's hardly ever any humidity, and there's usually a slight breeze which doesn't really help much, but it's better than nothing.

Depending on circumstances, in a working environment I could see soldiers seeing working temps toping 140 or higher. This stuff isn't easy, and for anyone to try and compare conditions here to mining or any other BS is fu(king retarded. It's not the same so don't try. Walking around on ground patrol in full gear having to stay focused on possibly coming under attack is something unlike anything else you could imagine. So unless you've been through it STFU.

Also the military has another reason for reporting lower temps because equipment stops working once temps hit a certain mark.