Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Gualán Guatemala

In Gualán, the summers are short, hot, oppressive, and mostly cloudy and the winters are warm, muggy, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 67°F to 93°F and is rarely below 62°F or above 99°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Gualán for warm-weather activities is from early December to early March.

The hot season lasts for 2.4 months, from March 22 to June 5, with an average daily high temperature above 90°F. The hottest month of the year in Gualán is May, with an average high of 92°F and low of 74°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from November 6 to February 5, with an average daily high temperature below 83°F. The coldest month of the year in Gualán is January, with an average low of 67°F and high of 82°F.

In Gualán, 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 Gualán begins around November 13 and lasts for 5.2 months, ending around April 21.

The clearest month of the year in Gualán is January, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 76% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 21 and lasts for 6.8 months, ending around November 13.

The cloudiest month of the year in Gualán is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 90% 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 Gualán varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.3 months, from May 18 to October 27, with a greater than 26% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Gualán is September, with an average of 12.9 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.7 months, from October 27 to May 18. The month with the fewest wet days in Gualán is March, with an average of 2.4 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 Gualán is September, with an average of 12.9 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 45% on September 14.

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. Gualán experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Gualán. The month with the most rain in Gualán is September, with an average rainfall of 5.2 inches.

The month with the least rain in Gualán is March, with an average rainfall of 0.7 inches.

The length of the day in Gualán varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 14 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 13 hours, 2 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:26 AM on June 2, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 1 minute later at 6:27 AM on January 22. The earliest sunset is at 5:24 PM on November 20, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 8 minutes later at 6:31 PM on July 7.

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

Gualán experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 8.7 months, from March 21 to December 11, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 59% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Gualán is August, with 30.8 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Gualán is February, with 14.3 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 Gualán experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.8 months, from October 20 to May 15, with average wind speeds of more than 4.8 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Gualán is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.8 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.2 months, from May 15 to October 20. The calmest month of the year in Gualán is September, with an average hourly wind speed of 3.8 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Gualán is from the north throughout the year.

Gualán 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 4.9 months, from May 19 to October 14, with an average temperature above 85°F. The month of the year in Gualán with the warmest water is September, with an average temperature of 86°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.0 months, from December 9 to March 7, with an average temperature below 81°F. The month of the year in Gualán with the coolest water is January, with an average temperature of 80°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Gualán 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 Gualán for general outdoor tourist activities is from early December to early March, with a peak score in the second 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 Gualán for hot-weather activities is from late November to mid April, with a peak score in the first week of March.

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 Gualán 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 26 to April 26, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Gualán is March, with an average of 6.8 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.0 months, from August 19 to October 20, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Gualán is September, with an average of 4.6 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Gualán are 15.120 deg latitude, -89.357 deg longitude, and 404 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Gualán contains significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 722 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 549 feet. Within 10 miles contains significant variations in elevation (6,273 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (9,875 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Gualán is covered by cropland (33%), trees (30%), grassland (26%), and shrubs (11%), within 10 miles by trees (54%) and cropland (37%), and within 50 miles by trees (49%) and cropland (31%).