Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Shanhaiguan China

In Shanhaiguan, the summers are long, warm, humid, wet, and partly cloudy and the winters are freezing, snowy, windy, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 16°F to 84°F and is rarely below 9°F or above 89°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Shanhaiguan for warm-weather activities is from early June to late September.

The warm season lasts for 4.2 months, from May 20 to September 25, with an average daily high temperature above 73°F. The hottest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is July, with an average high of 83°F and low of 70°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.2 months, from November 27 to March 2, with an average daily high temperature below 41°F. The coldest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is January, with an average low of 17°F and high of 31°F.

In Shanhaiguan, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Shanhaiguan begins around September 4 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around February 23.

The clearest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is December, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 75% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 23 and lasts for 6.4 months, ending around September 4.

The cloudiest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 42% 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 Shanhaiguan varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.5 months, from May 27 to September 13, with a greater than 20% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Shanhaiguan is July, with an average of 11.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.5 months, from September 13 to May 27. The month with the fewest wet days in Shanhaiguan is January, with an average of 0.3 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. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation in Shanhaiguan changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 9.9 months, from February 21 to December 17. The month with the most days of rain alone in Shanhaiguan is July, with an average of 11.5 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 2.2 months, from December 17 to February 21. The month with the most days of snow alone in Shanhaiguan is February, with an average of 0.3 days.

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. Shanhaiguan experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 7.1 months, from March 31 to November 3, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Shanhaiguan is July, with an average rainfall of 5.5 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.9 months, from November 3 to March 31. The month with the least rain in Shanhaiguan is January, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Shanhaiguan varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 20 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 15 hours, 1 minute of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:31 AM on June 14, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 52 minutes later at 7:23 AM on January 6. The earliest sunset is at 4:35 PM on December 7, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 58 minutes later at 7:34 PM on June 27.

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

Shanhaiguan experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 2.7 months, from June 21 to September 10, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 21% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Shanhaiguan is July, with 22.2 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is March 12, when muggy conditions are essentially unheard of.

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 Shanhaiguan experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.9 months, from September 24 to May 20, with average wind speeds of more than 9.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is November, with an average hourly wind speed of 11.2 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.1 months, from May 20 to September 24. The calmest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.4 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the west for 1.5 months, from March 29 to May 15 and for 2.5 months, from August 26 to November 12, with a peak percentage of 41% on November 11. The wind is most often from the south for 3.4 months, from May 15 to August 26, with a peak percentage of 48% on July 7. The wind is most often from the north for 4.5 months, from November 12 to March 29, with a peak percentage of 49% on January 1.

Shanhaiguan 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 extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.3 months, from June 25 to October 4, with an average temperature above 68°F. The month of the year in Shanhaiguan with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 76°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.6 months, from December 20 to April 8, with an average temperature below 42°F. The month of the year in Shanhaiguan with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 33°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Shanhaiguan 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 Shanhaiguan for general outdoor tourist activities is from early June to late September, with a peak score in the last week of August.

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 Shanhaiguan for hot-weather activities is from mid July to late August, with a peak score in the first week of August.

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).

The growing season in Shanhaiguan typically lasts for 7.1 months (218 days), from around April 3 to around November 7, rarely starting before March 19 or after April 17, and rarely ending before October 23 or after November 22.

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.

Based on growing degree days alone, the first spring blooms in Shanhaiguan should appear around April 25, only rarely appearing before April 18 or after May 3.

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 3.5 months, from April 14 to July 31, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is June, with an average of 6.5 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.1 months, from November 1 to February 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.2 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Shanhaiguan is December, with an average of 2.3 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Shanhaiguan are 40.002 deg latitude, 119.749 deg longitude, and 43 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Shanhaiguan contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 230 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 62 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (3,015 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (4,577 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Shanhaiguan is covered by artificial surfaces (64%) and cropland (23%), within 10 miles by water (37%) and cropland (30%), and within 50 miles by water (46%) and cropland (23%).