Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Hŭngju-dong North Korea

In Hŭngju-dong, the summers are long, warm, and wet; the winters are freezing and snowy; and it is partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 2°F to 81°F and is rarely below -11°F or above 87°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Hŭngju-dong for warm-weather activities is from late June to late August.

The warm season lasts for 4.1 months, from May 17 to September 20, with an average daily high temperature above 69°F. The hottest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is July, with an average high of 80°F and low of 64°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.0 months, from November 27 to February 28, with an average daily high temperature below 32°F. The coldest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is January, with an average low of 3°F and high of 21°F.

In Hŭngju-dong, 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 Hŭngju-dong begins around August 27 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around February 18.

The clearest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 66% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 18 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around August 27.

The cloudiest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 50% 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 Hŭngju-dong varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.8 months, from May 12 to September 6, with a greater than 28% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Hŭngju-dong is July, with an average of 16.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.2 months, from September 6 to May 12. The month with the fewest wet days in Hŭngju-dong is January, with an average of 0.7 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 Hŭngju-dong changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 9.2 months, from February 29 to December 6. The month with the most days of rain alone in Hŭngju-dong is July, with an average of 16.3 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 2.8 months, from December 6 to February 28. The month with the most days of snow alone in Hŭngju-dong is December, with an average of 0.9 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. Hŭngju-dong experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 8.0 months, from March 21 to November 22, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Hŭngju-dong is July, with an average rainfall of 7.1 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from November 22 to March 21. The month with the least rain in Hŭngju-dong is January, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

Snowfall

As with rainfall, we consider the snowfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Hŭngju-dong experiences some seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from November 18 to March 19, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Hŭngju-dong is December, with an average snowfall of 1.3 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 8.0 months, from March 19 to November 18. The least snow falls around July 25, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Hŭngju-dong varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 13 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 15 hours, 8 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:01 AM on June 14, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 58 minutes later at 7:58 AM on January 5. The earliest sunset is at 5:05 PM on December 7, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 5 minutes later at 8:10 PM on June 27.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Hŭngju-dong 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.

Hŭngju-dong experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 1.8 months, from July 3 to August 28, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 13% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Hŭngju-dong is July, with 10.2 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is March 10, 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 Hŭngju-dong experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 3.8 months, from February 4 to May 30, with average wind speeds of more than 6.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.7 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.1 months, from May 30 to February 4. The calmest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.9 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Hŭngju-dong varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the north for 1.7 months, from January 11 to March 2, with a peak percentage of 32% on February 2. The wind is most often from the west for 1.1 months, from March 2 to April 4, with a peak percentage of 35% on March 31. The wind is most often from the south for 9.2 months, from April 4 to January 11, with a peak percentage of 32% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Hŭngju-dong 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 Hŭngju-dong for general outdoor tourist activities is from late June to late August, with a peak score in the third 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 Hŭngju-dong for hot-weather activities is from mid July to mid 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 Hŭngju-dong typically lasts for 5.5 months (166 days), from around April 26 to around October 10, rarely starting before April 11 or after May 11, and rarely ending before September 24 or after October 25.

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 Hŭngju-dong should appear around May 1, only rarely appearing before April 22 or after May 12.

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 20 to August 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.6 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is June, with an average of 6.4 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.0 months, from November 2 to February 2, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Hŭngju-dong is December, with an average of 2.1 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Hŭngju-dong are 40.996 deg latitude, 126.548 deg longitude, and 974 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Hŭngju-dong contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,788 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,463 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (3,455 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (7,382 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Hŭngju-dong is covered by sparse vegetation (48%), trees (23%), and cropland (20%), within 10 miles by trees (38%) and sparse vegetation (32%), and within 50 miles by trees (71%) and sparse vegetation (10%).