Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Puryŏng North Korea

In Puryŏng, the summers are long, comfortable, 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 8°F to 80°F and is rarely below -2°F or above 87°F.

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

The warm season lasts for 4.0 months, from May 24 to September 23, with an average daily high temperature above 68°F. The hottest month of the year in Puryŏng is August, with an average high of 78°F and low of 64°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.2 months, from November 28 to March 1, with an average daily high temperature below 34°F. The coldest month of the year in Puryŏng is January, with an average low of 8°F and high of 23°F.

In Puryŏng, 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 Puryŏng begins around September 5 and lasts for 6.9 months, ending around April 2.

The clearest month of the year in Puryŏng is January, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 72% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 2 and lasts for 5.1 months, ending around September 5.

The cloudiest month of the year in Puryŏng is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 51% 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 Puryŏng varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.3 months, from May 8 to September 17, with a greater than 22% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Puryŏng is July, with an average of 12.4 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.7 months, from September 17 to May 8. The month with the fewest wet days in Puryŏng is January, with an average of 0.8 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 Puryŏng changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 8.7 months, from March 14 to December 3. The month with the most days of rain alone in Puryŏng is July, with an average of 12.4 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 3.3 months, from December 3 to March 14. The month with the most days of snow alone in Puryŏng 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. Puryŏng experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 7.7 months, from March 28 to November 18, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Puryŏng is July, with an average rainfall of 4.8 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.3 months, from November 18 to March 28. The month with the least rain in Puryŏng 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. Puryŏng experiences some seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 4.1 months, from November 23 to March 27, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Puryŏng is February, with an average snowfall of 1.9 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 7.9 months, from March 27 to November 23. The least snow falls around July 29, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Puryŏng varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 7 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 15 hours, 15 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:44 AM on June 14, and the latest sunrise is 3 hours, 5 minutes later at 7:49 AM on January 4. The earliest sunset is at 4:49 PM on December 8, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 12 minutes later at 8:01 PM on June 27.

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

Puryŏng experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 1.7 months, from July 8 to August 29, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 11% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Puryŏng is August, with 9.0 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is March 20, 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 Puryŏng experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 5.8 months, from October 16 to April 9, with average wind speeds of more than 7.6 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Puryŏng is January, with an average hourly wind speed of 10.6 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 6.2 months, from April 9 to October 16. The calmest month of the year in Puryŏng is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.4 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 2.8 months, from June 8 to September 2, with a peak percentage of 40% on July 4. The wind is most often from the west for 9.2 months, from September 2 to June 8, with a peak percentage of 51% on January 1.

Puryŏng 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 significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 2.7 months, from July 9 to September 30, with an average temperature above 64°F. The month of the year in Puryŏng with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 70°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.3 months, from December 19 to April 27, with an average temperature below 43°F. The month of the year in Puryŏng with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 36°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Puryŏng 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 Puryŏng for general outdoor tourist activities is from early July to early September, with a peak score in the second 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 Puryŏng for hot-weather activities is from late 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 Puryŏng typically lasts for 6.2 months (190 days), from around April 14 to around October 21, rarely starting before March 30 or after April 30, and rarely ending before October 6 or after November 6.

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 Puryŏng should appear around May 6, only rarely appearing before April 26 or after May 14.

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 4.0 months, from April 13 to August 13, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.5 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Puryŏng is June, with an average of 6.2 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.9 months, from November 6 to February 1, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.9 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Puryŏng is December, with an average of 2.1 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Puryŏng are 42.061 deg latitude, 129.712 deg longitude, and 551 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Puryŏng contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,585 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 831 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (5,046 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (8,320 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Puryŏng is covered by sparse vegetation (47%), cropland (21%), trees (20%), and grassland (12%), within 10 miles by trees (64%) and grassland (16%), and within 50 miles by trees (42%) and water (30%).