Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Al Liwā’ Oman

In Al Liwā’, the summers are long, sweltering, oppressive, arid, and partly cloudy and the winters are comfortable, dry, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 60°F to 99°F and is rarely below 55°F or above 105°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best times of year to visit Al Liwā’ for hot-weather activities are from mid March to late April and from mid October to late November.

The hot season lasts for 4.7 months, from May 2 to September 23, with an average daily high temperature above 94°F. The hottest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is June, with an average high of 99°F and low of 86°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from December 6 to March 7, with an average daily high temperature below 80°F. The coldest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is January, with an average low of 60°F and high of 75°F.

In Al Liwā’, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Al Liwā’ begins around August 31 and lasts for 9.5 months, ending around June 15.

The clearest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 91% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around June 15 and lasts for 2.5 months, ending around August 31.

The cloudiest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 51% of the time.

Al Liwā’ does not experience significant seasonal variation in the frequency of wet days (i.e., those with greater than 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation). The frequency ranges from 1% to 7%, with an average value of 3%.

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 Al Liwā’ is February, with an average of 1.8 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 7% on February 3.

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. Al Liwā’ experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 1.7 months, from January 27 to March 17, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Al Liwā’ is February, with an average rainfall of 0.6 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 10 months, from March 17 to January 27. The month with the least rain in Al Liwā’ is September, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Al Liwā’ varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 10 hours, 37 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 13 hours, 40 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:24 AM on June 8, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 35 minutes later at 6:59 AM on January 14. The earliest sunset is at 5:24 PM on November 28, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 42 minutes later at 7:06 PM on July 2.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Al Liwā’ 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.

Al Liwā’ experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 7.9 months, from March 26 to November 22, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 29% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Al Liwā’ is August, with 30.2 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Al Liwā’ is January, with 2.1 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 Al Liwā’ experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from December 12 to July 2, with average wind speeds of more than 7.1 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.3 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.3 months, from July 2 to December 12. The calmest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.9 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Al Liwā’ varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the east for 5.5 months, from July 3 to December 20, with a peak percentage of 59% on August 18. The wind is most often from the west for 6.5 months, from December 20 to July 3, with a peak percentage of 35% on January 1.

Al Liwā’ 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 water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 4.6 months, from May 22 to October 8, with an average temperature above 87°F. The month of the year in Al Liwā’ with the warmest water is July, with an average temperature of 90°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.4 months, from December 19 to March 31, with an average temperature below 77°F. The month of the year in Al Liwā’ with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 74°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Al Liwā’ 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 Al Liwā’ for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid November to late March, with a peak score in the second week of February.

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 Al Liwā’ for hot-weather activities are from mid March to late April and from mid October to late November, with a peak score in the first week of November.

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 Al Liwā’ 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.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.4 months, from April 23 to July 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.2 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is May, with an average of 7.8 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.8 months, from November 11 to February 5, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Al Liwā’ is December, with an average of 4.3 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Al Liwā’ are 24.536 deg latitude, 56.566 deg longitude, and 16 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Al Liwā’ contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 105 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 29 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (2,172 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (5,233 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Al Liwā’ is covered by bare soil (64%), water (12%), and cropland (11%), within 10 miles by bare soil (53%) and water (42%), and within 50 miles by bare soil (54%) and water (44%).