Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Puerto San José Guatemala

In Puerto San José, the wet season is overcast, the dry season is mostly clear, and it is hot and oppressive year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 67°F to 92°F and is rarely below 63°F or above 95°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Puerto San José for hot-weather activities is from late November to late March.

The temperature in Puerto San José varies so little throughout the year that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss hot and cold seasons.

In Puerto San José, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Puerto San José begins around November 15 and lasts for 5.0 months, ending around April 17.

The clearest month of the year in Puerto San José is January, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 80% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 17 and lasts for 7.0 months, ending around November 15.

The cloudiest month of the year in Puerto San José is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 92% 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 Puerto San José varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.4 months, from May 12 to October 26, with a greater than 29% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Puerto San José is September, with an average of 16.4 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.6 months, from October 26 to May 12. The month with the fewest wet days in Puerto San José is February, with an average of 0.4 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 Puerto San José is September, with an average of 16.4 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 56% on September 11.

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. Puerto San José experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 8.1 months, from March 31 to December 3, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Puerto San José is September, with an average rainfall of 7.4 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 3.9 months, from December 3 to March 31. The month with the least rain in Puerto San José is January, with an average rainfall of 0.1 inches.

The length of the day in Puerto San José varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 18 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 12 hours, 57 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:34 AM on June 2, and the latest sunrise is 57 minutes later at 6:31 AM on January 24. The earliest sunset is at 5:32 PM on November 19, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 4 minutes later at 6:35 PM on July 9.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Puerto San José 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.

Puerto San José experiences some seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 11 months, from February 13 to December 30, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 88% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Puerto San José is August, with 31.0 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Puerto San José is February, with 25.5 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 Puerto San José experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.7 months, from November 23 to April 12, with average wind speeds of more than 6.9 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Puerto San José is January, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.9 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.3 months, from April 12 to November 23. The calmest month of the year in Puerto San José is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.7 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Puerto San José varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the west for 2.8 months, from March 7 to May 31 and for 1.5 months, from September 13 to October 28, with a peak percentage of 41% on October 8. The wind is most often from the south for 3.4 months, from May 31 to September 13, with a peak percentage of 41% on June 15. The wind is most often from the north for 4.3 months, from October 28 to March 7, with a peak percentage of 54% on January 1.

Puerto San José 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 does not vary significantly over the course of the year, remaining within 2°F of 84°F throughout.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Puerto San José 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 Puerto San José for general outdoor tourist activities is from early December to mid March, with a peak score in the third 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 time of year to visit Puerto San José for hot-weather activities is from late November to late March, with a peak score in the second week of February.

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 Puerto San José 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 some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.0 months, from February 13 to April 12, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Puerto San José is March, with an average of 6.8 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.5 months, from August 11 to October 27, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.8 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Puerto San José is September, with an average of 4.4 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Puerto San José are 13.927 deg latitude, -90.822 deg longitude, and 20 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Puerto San José is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 75 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 21 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (220 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (13,054 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Puerto San José is covered by water (40%), grassland (20%), trees (18%), and cropland (13%), within 10 miles by water (51%) and trees (15%), and within 50 miles by water (51%) and trees (18%).