Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Central African Republic Central African Republic

In Central African Republic, the summers are short, hot, muggy, and overcast and the winters are long, warm, oppressive, wet, and mostly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 64°F to 94°F and is rarely below 59°F or above 100°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best times of year to visit Central African Republic for hot-weather activities are from early June to mid July and from mid November to mid February.

The hot season lasts for 1.8 months, from January 31 to March 25, with an average daily high temperature above 92°F. The hottest month of the year in Central African Republic is March, with an average high of 92°F and low of 72°F.

The cool season lasts for 4.3 months, from June 17 to October 27, with an average daily high temperature below 86°F. The coldest month of the year in Central African Republic is January, with an average low of 65°F and high of 90°F.

In Central African Republic, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Central African Republic begins around May 17 and lasts for 2.7 months, ending around August 7.

The clearest month of the year in Central African Republic is June, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 33% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around August 7 and lasts for 9.3 months, ending around May 17.

The cloudiest month of the year in Central African Republic is April, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 79% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Central African Republic varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 8.1 months, from March 10 to November 13, with a greater than 41% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Central African Republic is August, with an average of 22.9 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 3.9 months, from November 13 to March 10. The month with the fewest wet days in Central African Republic is January, with an average of 3.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Central African Republic is August, with an average of 22.9 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 75% on August 16.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Central African Republic experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Central African Republic. The month with the most rain in Central African Republic is August, with an average rainfall of 7.0 inches.

The month with the least rain in Central African Republic is January, with an average rainfall of 0.5 inches.

The length of the day in Central African Republic does not vary substantially over the course of the year, staying within 31 minutes of 12 hours throughout. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 43 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 12 hours, 32 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:18 AM on May 26, and the latest sunrise is 36 minutes later at 5:54 AM on February 1. The earliest sunset is at 5:14 PM on November 12, and the latest sunset is 42 minutes later at 5:56 PM on July 15.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Central African Republic during 2024.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

Central African Republic experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 10 months, from February 8 to December 22, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 65% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Central African Republic is August, with 31.0 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Central African Republic is January, with 17.4 days that are muggy or worse.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Central African Republic experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.0 months, from December 10 to June 10, with average wind speeds of more than 4.0 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Central African Republic is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.8 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 6.0 months, from June 10 to December 10. The calmest month of the year in Central African Republic is September, with an average hourly wind speed of 3.2 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Central African Republic varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the east for 1.4 weeks, from January 13 to January 23 and for 1.5 months, from November 13 to December 30, with a peak percentage of 39% on November 23. The wind is most often from the south for 7.2 months, from January 23 to August 28 and for 2.1 months, from September 10 to November 13, with a peak percentage of 78% on April 15. The wind is most often from the north for 2.0 weeks, from December 30 to January 13, with a peak percentage of 32% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Central African Republic throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Central African Republic for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid December to late January, with a peak score in the first week of January.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Central African Republic for hot-weather activities are from early June to mid July and from mid November to mid February, with a peak score in the first week of January.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Temperatures in Central African Republic are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Central African Republic are 7.000 deg latitude, 21.000 deg longitude, and 0 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Central African Republic is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 0 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 0 feet. Within 10 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet). Within 50 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Central African Republic is covered by grassland (53%) and trees (47%), within 10 miles by trees (58%) and grassland (42%), and within 50 miles by trees (67%) and grassland (32%).