Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Nizwá Oman

In Nizwá, the summers are long, sweltering, and partly cloudy; the winters are comfortable and mostly clear; and it is dry year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 56°F to 107°F and is rarely below 51°F or above 111°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Nizwá for hot-weather activities is from late September to early November.

The hot season lasts for 4.0 months, from May 8 to September 7, with an average daily high temperature above 101°F. The hottest month of the year in Nizwá is July, with an average high of 106°F and low of 86°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from November 27 to February 27, with an average daily high temperature below 83°F. The coldest month of the year in Nizwá is January, with an average low of 57°F and high of 77°F.

In Nizwá, 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 Nizwá begins around September 3 and lasts for 9.1 months, ending around June 7.

The clearest month of the year in Nizwá is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 89% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around June 7 and lasts for 2.9 months, ending around September 3.

The cloudiest month of the year in Nizwá is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 54% of the time.

Nizwá 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 2% to 9%, with an average value of 4%.

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 Nizwá is August, with an average of 2.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 9% on August 1.

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. Nizwá experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 6.2 months, from February 4 to August 10, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Nizwá is February, with an average rainfall of 0.6 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 5.8 months, from August 10 to February 4. The month with the least rain in Nizwá is November, with an average rainfall of 0.2 inches.

The length of the day in Nizwá varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 10 hours, 44 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 13 hours, 33 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:23 AM on June 8, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 29 minutes later at 6:52 AM on January 16. The earliest sunset is at 5:23 PM on November 27, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 36 minutes later at 6:59 PM on July 3.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Nizwá 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.

Nizwá experiences some seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.4 months, from May 20 to September 3, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 3% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Nizwá is July, with 2.6 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Nizwá is January, with 0.0 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 Nizwá experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.1 months, from January 14 to August 17, with average wind speeds of more than 5.1 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Nizwá is June, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.0 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.9 months, from August 17 to January 14. The calmest month of the year in Nizwá is November, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.2 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Nizwá varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the west for 1.3 weeks, from April 18 to April 27 and for 3.3 weeks, from June 19 to July 12, with a peak percentage of 34% on April 22. The wind is most often from the north for 1.7 months, from April 27 to June 19 and for 7.1 months, from September 15 to April 18, with a peak percentage of 36% on May 11. The wind is most often from the south for 2.1 months, from July 12 to September 15, with a peak percentage of 34% on August 18.

Nizwá 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 4.7 months, from May 15 to October 6, with an average temperature above 86°F. The month of the year in Nizwá with the warmest water is June, with an average temperature of 88°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.2 months, from December 20 to March 25, with an average temperature below 77°F. The month of the year in Nizwá with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 74°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Nizwá 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 Nizwá for general outdoor tourist activities is from late October to mid March, with a peak score in the last week of November.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Nizwá for hot-weather activities is from late September to early November, with a peak score in the second week of October.

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 Nizwá 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 2.5 months, from April 19 to July 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Nizwá is May, with an average of 7.9 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.7 months, from November 12 to February 2, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.4 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Nizwá is December, with an average of 4.8 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Nizwá are 22.933 deg latitude, 57.533 deg longitude, and 1,677 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Nizwá contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,913 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,873 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (5,561 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (9,633 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Nizwá is covered by bare soil (75%), within 10 miles by bare soil (97%), and within 50 miles by bare soil (95%).