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May Weather in San Pedro de Atacama Chile

Daily high temperatures decrease by 3°F, from 73°F to 69°F, rarely falling below 63°F or exceeding 77°F.

Daily low temperatures decrease by 4°F, from 41°F to 37°F, rarely falling below 31°F or exceeding 46°F.

For reference, on December 27, the hottest day of the year, temperatures in San Pedro de Atacama typically range from 47°F to 80°F, while on July 11, the coldest day of the year, they range from 34°F to 67°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Average High and Low Temperature in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313125°F25°F30°F30°F35°F35°F40°F40°F45°F45°F50°F50°F55°F55°F60°F60°F65°F65°F70°F70°F75°F75°F80°F80°FAprJunMay 173°FMay 173°F41°F41°FMay 3169°FMay 3169°F37°F37°FMay 1171°FMay 1171°F40°F40°FMay 2170°FMay 2170°F38°F38°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 San Pedro de Atacama

Average Hourly Temperature in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 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 AMAprJunvery coldvery coldcoldcoldcoolcoolcomfortablewarm
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.

Chalchihuites, Mexico (4,006 miles away) is the far-away foreign place with temperatures most similar to San Pedro de Atacama (view comparison).

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The month of May in San Pedro de Atacama experiences essentially constant cloud cover, with the percentage of time that the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy remaining about 16% throughout the month.

The clearest day of the month is May 29, with clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy conditions 85% of the time.

For reference, on January 7, the cloudiest day of the year, the chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 33%, while on September 9, the clearest day of the year, the chance of clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy skies is 91%.

Cloud Cover Categories in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Cloud Cover Categories in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%AprJunMay 183%May 183%May 3185%May 3185%May 1184%May 1184%May 2185%May 2185%clearmostly clearovercastpartly cloudymostly 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.

Over the course of May in San Pedro de Atacama, the length of the day is gradually decreasing. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day decreases by 25 minutes, implying an average daily decrease of 50 seconds, and weekly decrease of 5 minutes, 50 seconds.

The shortest day of the month is May 31, with 10 hours, 49 minutes of daylight and the longest day is May 1, with 11 hours, 14 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in May in San Pedro de Atacama

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 earliest sunrise of the month in San Pedro de Atacama is 6:52 AM on May 1 and the latest sunrise is 13 minutes later at 7:06 AM on May 31.

The latest sunset is 6:06 PM on May 1 and the earliest sunset is 12 minutes earlier at 5:55 PM on May 31.

Daylight saving time is observed in San Pedro de Atacama during 2024, but it neither starts nor ends during May, so the entire month is in daylight saving time.

For reference, on December 21, the longest day of the year, the Sun rises at 6:44 AM and sets 13 hours, 33 minutes later, at 8:17 PM, while on June 20, the shortest day of the year, it rises at 7:12 AM and sets 10 hours, 44 minutes later, at 5:56 PM.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031312 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMAprJun6:52 AM6:52 AMMay 16:06 PMMay 16:06 PM7:06 AM7:06 AMMay 315:55 PMMay 315:55 PM6:57 AM6:57 AMMay 116:01 PMMay 116:01 PM7:01 AM7:01 AMMay 215:57 PMMay 215:57 PMSolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunset
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 San Pedro de Atacama

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 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 AMAprJun00101020203030404000101020203030404050
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 San Pedro de Atacama

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMAprJunApr 82:22 PMApr 82:22 PMApr 237:50 PMApr 237:50 PMMay 711:23 PMMay 711:23 PMMay 239:54 AMMay 239:54 AMJun 68:38 AMJun 68:38 AMJun 219:09 PMJun 219:09 PM6:26 AM6:26 AM6:26 PM6:26 PM6:00 PM6:00 PM7:18 AM7:18 AM6:16 AM6:16 AM5:40 PM5:40 PM5:13 PM5:13 PM7:04 AM7:04 AM7:16 AM7:16 AM6:00 PM6:00 PM5:33 PM5:33 PM7:53 AM7:53 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%-1:45 PMWSW-6:53 AMN232,216 mi
2
39%1:00 AMESE2:27 PMWSW-7:46 AMN229,883 mi
3
27%2:04 AMESE3:05 PMW-8:37 AMN227,885 mi
4
17%3:06 AME3:42 PMW-9:26 AMN226,426 mi
5
9%4:08 AME4:19 PMW-10:14 AMN225,706 mi
6
3%5:11 AME4:58 PMWNW-11:05 AMN225,884 mi
7
0%6:16 AMENE5:40 PMWNW-11:57 AMN227,034 mi
8
0%7:22 AMENE6:26 PMWNW-12:54 PMN229,122 mi
9
4%8:29 AMENE7:18 PMWNW-1:53 PMN231,996 mi
10
9%9:34 AMENE8:15 PMWNW-2:54 PMN235,405 mi
11
16%10:34 AMENE9:14 PMWNW-3:54 PMN239,039 mi
12
25%11:28 AMENE10:14 PMWNW-4:51 PMN242,582 mi
13
35%12:15 PMENE11:12 PMWNW-5:44 PMN245,750 mi
14
45%12:55 PMENE--6:31 PMN248,327 mi
15
50%-12:07 AMWNW1:30 PMENE7:15 PMN250,165 mi
16
64%-12:59 AMWNW2:02 PMENE7:55 PMN251,194 mi
17
73%-1:49 AMW2:31 PME8:34 PMN251,411 mi
18
81%-2:39 AMW3:00 PME9:13 PMN250,873 mi
19
88%-3:28 AMW3:30 PME9:52 PMN249,684 mi
20
94%-4:18 AMW4:00 PMESE10:33 PMN247,982 mi
21
98%-5:10 AMWSW4:34 PMESE11:17 PMN245,920 mi
22
99%-6:05 AMWSW5:13 PMESE--
23
100%-7:04 AMWSW5:56 PMESE12:06 AMS243,654 mi
24
100%-8:04 AMWSW6:47 PMESE12:58 AMS241,328 mi
25
97%-9:04 AMWSW7:44 PMESE1:55 AMS239,057 mi
26
92%-10:02 AMWSW8:46 PMESE2:54 AMS236,925 mi
27
85%-10:56 AMWSW9:50 PMESE3:53 AMS234,980 mi
28
76%-11:44 AMWSW10:54 PMESE4:49 AMS233,244 mi
29
65%-12:26 PMWSW11:56 PMESE5:43 AMN231,731 mi
30
50%-1:05 PMWSW-6:33 AMN230,463 mi
31
42%12:58 AME1:42 PMW-7:21 AMN229,489 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 San Pedro de Atacama is essentially constant during May, remaining around 0% throughout.

Humidity Comfort Levels in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Humidity Comfort Levels in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%AprJunMay 160%May 160%May 10%May 10%May 310%May 310%drydry
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 San Pedro de Atacama is essentially constant during May, remaining within 0.1 miles per hour of 8.0 miles per hour throughout.

For reference, on December 26, the windiest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 9.1 miles per hour, while on April 24, the calmest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 7.8 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in May in San Pedro de Atacama

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 San Pedro de Atacama throughout May is predominantly from the east, with a peak proportion of 40% on May 1.

Wind Direction in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Wind Direction in May in San Pedro de AtacamaWENMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%AprJunwesteastnorth
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).

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).

The growing season in San Pedro de Atacama typically lasts for 8.4 months (254 days), from around September 10 to around May 23, rarely starting before August 6 or after October 27, and rarely ending before April 26 or after June 15.

During May in San Pedro de Atacama, the chance that a given day is within the growing season is very rapidly decreasing falling from 85% to 34% over the course of the month.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in May in San Pedro de Atacamagrowing seasonMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%AprJun85%May 185%May 1May 3134%May 3134%73%May 1173%May 1154%May 2154%May 21Jun 1510%Jun 1510%very coldcoldcoolcomfortablewarmfreezing
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 San Pedro de Atacama are increasing during May, increasing by 221°F, from 3,393°F to 3,614°F, over the course of the month.

Growing Degree Days in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Growing Degree Days in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031313,200°F3,200°F3,300°F3,300°F3,400°F3,400°F3,500°F3,500°F3,600°F3,600°F3,700°F3,700°F3,800°F3,800°FAprJunMay 13,393°FMay 13,393°FMay 313,614°FMay 313,614°FMay 113,476°FMay 113,476°FMay 213,548°FMay 213,548°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 San Pedro de Atacama is gradually decreasing during May, falling by 0.8 kWh, from 6.1 kWh to 5.3 kWh, over the course of the month.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in May in San Pedro de Atacama

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in May in San Pedro de AtacamaMay11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWhAprJunMay 16.1 kWhMay 16.1 kWhMay 315.3 kWhMay 315.3 kWhMay 115.8 kWhMay 115.8 kWhMay 215.5 kWhMay 215.5 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 San Pedro de Atacama are -22.911 deg latitude, -68.201 deg longitude, and 8,018 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of San Pedro de Atacama contains significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 650 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 8,026 feet. Within 10 miles contains significant variations in elevation (2,283 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (12,320 feet).

The area within 2 miles of San Pedro de Atacama is covered by bare soil (79%), within 10 miles by bare soil (91%), and within 50 miles by bare soil (69%) and sparse vegetation (13%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in San Pedro de Atacama, 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, Aeródromo El Loa, in our network suitable to be used as a proxy for the historical temperature and dew point records of San Pedro de Atacama.

At a distance of 91 kilometers from San Pedro de Atacama, 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 San Pedro de Atacama 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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