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May Weather in Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates

Daily high temperatures increase by 5°F, from 94°F to 99°F, rarely falling below 86°F or exceeding 106°F.

Daily low temperatures increase by 5°F, from 76°F to 82°F, rarely falling below 71°F or exceeding 86°F.

For reference, on August 4, the hottest day of the year, temperatures in Abu Dhabi typically range from 88°F to 104°F, while on January 16, the coldest day of the year, they range from 60°F to 73°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in May in Abu Dhabi

Average High and Low Temperature in May in Abu DhabiMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313160°F60°F65°F65°F70°F70°F75°F75°F80°F80°F85°F85°F90°F90°F95°F95°F100°F100°F105°F105°F110°F110°F115°F115°F120°F120°FAprJunMay 194°FMay 194°F76°F76°FMay 3199°FMay 3199°F82°F82°FMay 1196°FMay 1196°F79°F79°FMay 2198°FMay 2198°F80°F80°F
The daily average high (red line) and low (blue line) temperature, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding average perceived temperatures.

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the hourly average temperatures for the quarter of the year centered on May. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

Average Hourly Temperature in May in Abu Dhabi

Average Hourly Temperature in May in Abu DhabiMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMAprJuncomfortablewarmhotsweltering
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

Chingueṭṭi, Mauritania (4,228 miles away) is the far-away foreign place with temperatures most similar to Abu Dhabi (view comparison).

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The month of May in Abu Dhabi experiences gradually decreasing cloud cover, with the percentage of time that the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy decreasing from 22% to 16%. The lowest chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 14% on May 25.

The clearest day of the month is May 25, with clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy conditions 86% of the time.

For reference, on July 20, the cloudiest day of the year, the chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 51%, while on October 4, the clearest day of the year, the chance of clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy skies is 92%.

Cloud Cover Categories in May in Abu Dhabi

Cloud Cover Categories in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%AprJunJul 2049%Jul 2049%May 178%May 178%May 3184%May 3184%May 1182%May 1182%May 2186%May 2186%clearovercastmostly clearmostly cloudypartly cloudy
0% clear 20% mostly clear 40% partly cloudy 60% mostly cloudy 80% overcast 100%
The percentage of time spent in each cloud cover band, categorized by the percentage of the sky covered by clouds.

Rainfall

To show variation within the month and not just the monthly total, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day.

The average sliding 31-day rainfall during May in Abu Dhabi is essentially constant, remaining about 0.0 inches throughout, and rarely exceeding 0.2 inches or falling below -0.0 inches.

The lowest average 31-day accumulation is 0.0 inches on May 23.

Average Monthly Rainfall in May in Abu Dhabi

Average Monthly Rainfall in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310.0 in0.0 in0.2 in0.2 in0.4 in0.4 in0.6 in0.6 in0.8 in0.8 in1.0 in1.0 in1.2 in1.2 inAprJunMay 230.0 inMay 230.0 inMay 10.1 inMay 10.1 inMay 110.0 inMay 110.0 in
The average rainfall (solid line) accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted line is the corresponding average snowfall.

Over the course of May in Abu Dhabi, the length of the day is gradually increasing. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day increases by 28 minutes, implying an average daily increase of 56 seconds, and weekly increase of 6 minutes, 35 seconds.

The shortest day of the month is May 1, with 13 hours, 5 minutes of daylight and the longest day is May 31, with 13 hours, 33 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in May in Abu Dhabi

The number of hours during which the Sun is visible (black line). From bottom (most yellow) to top (most gray), the color bands indicate: full daylight, twilight (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and full night.

The latest sunrise of the month in Abu Dhabi is 5:47 AM on May 1 and the earliest sunrise is 13 minutes earlier at 5:33 AM on May 31.

The earliest sunset is 6:52 PM on May 1 and the latest sunset is 15 minutes later at 7:06 PM on May 31.

Daylight saving time is not observed in Abu Dhabi during 2024.

For reference, on June 20, the longest day of the year, the Sun rises at 5:34 AM and sets 13 hours, 39 minutes later, at 7:13 PM, while on December 21, the shortest day of the year, it rises at 7:02 AM and sets 10 hours, 37 minutes later, at 5:39 PM.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in May in Abu Dhabi

The solar day over the course of May. From bottom to top, the black lines are the previous solar midnight, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, and the next solar midnight. The day, twilights (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and night are indicated by the color bands from yellow to gray.

The figure below presents a compact representation of the sun's elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon) and azimuth (its compass bearing) for every hour of every day in the reporting period. The horizontal axis is the day of the year and the vertical axis is the hour of the day. For a given day and hour of that day, the background color indicates the azimuth of the sun at that moment. The black isolines are contours of constant solar elevation.

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in May in Abu Dhabi

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in May in Abu DhabiMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMAprJun001010202020303040405050506060707080800001010202030303040405050606060707080
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of May 2024. The black lines are lines of constant solar elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon, in degrees). The background color fills indicate the azimuth (the compass bearing) of the sun. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries of the cardinal compass points indicate the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for May 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. The label associated with each bar indicates the date and time that the phase is obtained, and the companion time labels indicate the rise and set times of the Moon for the nearest time interval in which the moon is above the horizon.

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in May in Abu Dhabi

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in May in Abu DhabiMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMAprJunApr 810:22 PMApr 810:22 PMApr 243:50 AMApr 243:50 AMMay 87:23 AMMay 87:23 AMMay 235:54 PMMay 235:54 PMJun 64:38 PMJun 64:38 PMJun 225:09 AMJun 225:09 AM5:43 AM5:43 AM6:27 PM6:27 PM6:25 PM6:25 PM5:53 AM5:53 AM5:34 AM5:34 AM7:26 PM7:26 PM7:06 PM7:06 PM5:50 AM5:50 AM5:00 AM5:00 AM7:20 PM7:20 PM6:56 PM6:56 PM5:28 AM5:28 AM
The time in which the moon is above the horizon (light blue area), with new moons (dark gray lines) and full moons (blue lines) indicated. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.
May 2024IlluminationMoonriseMoonsetMoonriseMeridian PassingDistance
1
50%12:59 AMESE11:53 AMWSW-6:27 AMS233,050 mi
2
43%1:44 AMESE12:58 PMWSW-7:21 AMS230,645 mi
3
31%2:25 AMESE2:02 PMWSW-8:13 AMS228,511 mi
4
21%3:02 AME3:05 PMW-9:03 AMS226,846 mi
5
12%3:38 AME4:08 PMW-9:52 AMS225,856 mi
6
5%4:14 AME5:12 PMWNW-10:41 AMS225,717 mi
7
1%4:52 AMENE6:18 PMWNW-11:32 AMS226,536 mi
8
0%5:34 AMENE7:26 PMWNW-12:27 PMS228,317 mi
9
2%6:21 AMENE8:33 PMWNW-1:24 PMN230,947 mi
10
7%7:13 AMENE9:38 PMWNW-2:24 PMN234,205 mi
11
14%8:10 AMENE10:37 PMWNW-3:24 PMN237,796 mi
12
22%9:09 AMENE11:30 PMWNW-4:21 PMN241,402 mi
13
32%10:09 AMENE--5:14 PMN244,725 mi
14
41%-12:15 AMWNW11:07 AMENE6:03 PMS247,523 mi
15
50%-12:53 AMWNW12:03 PMENE6:47 PMS249,625 mi
16
61%-1:27 AMWNW12:55 PMENE7:28 PMS250,934 mi
17
70%-1:58 AMW1:46 PME8:08 PMS251,426 mi
18
79%-2:26 AMW2:36 PME8:46 PMS251,137 mi
19
86%-2:54 AMW3:26 PME9:25 PMS250,157 mi
20
92%-3:23 AMW4:17 PMESE10:06 PMS248,613 mi
21
97%-3:54 AMWSW5:11 PMESE10:49 PMS246,657 mi
22
99%-4:27 AMWSW6:07 PMESE11:36 PMS244,443 mi
23
100%-5:06 AMWSW7:06 PMESE--
24
100%-5:50 AMWSW8:07 PMESE12:28 AMS242,122 mi
25
98%-6:41 AMWSW9:08 PMESE1:24 AMS239,819 mi
26
94%-7:39 AMWSW10:05 PMESE2:23 AMS237,632 mi
27
87%-8:41 AMWSW10:57 PMESE3:23 AMS235,618 mi
28
79%-9:46 AMWSW11:43 PMESE4:22 AMS233,808 mi
29
69%-10:51 AMWSW-5:18 AMS232,217 mi
30
50%12:25 AMESE11:54 AMWSW-6:10 AMS230,862 mi
31
46%1:02 AME12:56 PMW-6:59 AMS229,781 mi

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.

The chance that a given day will be muggy in Abu Dhabi is very rapidly increasing during May, rising from 54% to 81% over the course of the month.

For reference, on July 29, the muggiest day of the year, there are muggy conditions 91% of the time, while on January 16, the least muggy day of the year, there are muggy conditions 4% of the time.

Humidity Comfort Levels in May in Abu Dhabi

Humidity Comfort Levels in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%AprJunMay 154%May 154%May 3181%May 3181%May 1164%May 1164%May 2173%May 2173%miserablemiserableoppressiveoppressivemuggymuggyhumidhumidcomfortablecomfortabledrydry
dry 55°F comfortable 60°F humid 65°F muggy 70°F oppressive 75°F miserable
The percentage of time spent at various humidity comfort levels, categorized by dew point.

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 Abu Dhabi is essentially constant during May, remaining within 0.1 miles per hour of 8.6 miles per hour throughout.

For reference, on February 18, the windiest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 10.1 miles per hour, while on September 17, the calmest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 7.5 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in May in Abu Dhabi

The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

The hourly average wind direction in Abu Dhabi throughout May is predominantly from the west, with a peak proportion of 48% on May 28.

Wind Direction in May in Abu Dhabi

Wind Direction in May in Abu DhabiNWMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%AprJunwestnortheastsouth
northeastsouthwest
The percentage of hours in which the mean wind direction is from each of the four cardinal wind directions, excluding hours in which the mean wind speed is less than 1.0 mph. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries are the percentage of hours spent in the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

Abu Dhabi is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average surface water temperature in Abu Dhabi is increasing during May, rising by 6°F, from 81°F to 87°F, over the course of the month.

Average Water Temperature in May in Abu Dhabi

The daily average water temperature (purple line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

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 Abu Dhabi 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.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in May in Abu Dhabi

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%AprJun100%May 16100%May 16comfortablewarmhotswelteringcool
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The percentage of time spent in various temperature bands. The black line is the percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season.

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.

The average accumulated growing degree days in Abu Dhabi are very rapidly increasing during May, increasing by 1,017°F, from 2,650°F to 3,667°F, over the course of the month.

Growing Degree Days in May in Abu Dhabi

Growing Degree Days in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031312,400°F2,400°F2,600°F2,600°F2,800°F2,800°F3,000°F3,000°F3,200°F3,200°F3,400°F3,400°F3,600°F3,600°F3,800°F3,800°FAprJunMay 12,650°FMay 12,650°FMay 313,667°FMay 313,667°FMay 112,979°FMay 112,979°FMay 213,319°FMay 213,319°F
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of May, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

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.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy in Abu Dhabi is gradually increasing during May, rising by 0.6 kWh, from 7.3 kWh to 7.9 kWh, over the course of the month.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in May in Abu Dhabi

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in May in Abu DhabiMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWh9 kWh9 kWhAprJunMay 17.3 kWhMay 17.3 kWhMay 317.9 kWhMay 317.9 kWhMay 117.6 kWhMay 117.6 kWhMay 217.9 kWhMay 217.9 kWh
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter (orange line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Abu Dhabi are 24.467 deg latitude, 54.367 deg longitude, and 20 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Abu Dhabi contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 190 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 27 feet. Within 10 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (308 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (823 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Abu Dhabi is covered by artificial surfaces (84%), within 10 miles by water (68%) and bare soil (19%), and within 50 miles by water (50%) and bare soil (48%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Abu Dhabi, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

Temperature and Dew Point

There is only a single weather station, Abu Dhabi Bateen Airport, in our network suitable to be used as a proxy for the historical temperature and dew point records of Abu Dhabi.

At a distance of 10 kilometers from Abu Dhabi, closer than our threshold of 150 kilometers, this station is deemed sufficiently nearby to be relied upon as our primary source for temperature and dew point records.

The station records are corrected for the elevation difference between the station and Abu Dhabi according to the International Standard Atmosphere , and by the relative change present in the MERRA-2 satellite-era reanalysis between the two locations.

Please note that the station records themselves may additionally have been back-filled using other nearby stations or the MERRA-2 reanalysis.

Other Data

All data relating to the Sun's position (e.g., sunrise and sunset) are computed using astronomical formulas from the book, Astronomical Algorithms 2nd Edition , by Jean Meeus.

All other weather data, including cloud cover, precipitation, wind speed and direction, and solar flux, come from NASA's MERRA-2 Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis . This reanalysis combines a variety of wide-area measurements in a state-of-the-art global meteorological model to reconstruct the hourly history of weather throughout the world on a 50-kilometer grid.

Land Use data comes from the Global Land Cover SHARE database , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Elevation data comes from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) , published by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Names, locations, and time zones of places and some airports come from the GeoNames Geographical Database .

Time zones for airports and weather stations are provided by AskGeo.com .

Maps are © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

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