Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Ust-Kuyga Russia

In Ust-Kuyga, the summers are cool; the winters are long, frigid, snowy, and windy; and it is mostly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from -37°F to 62°F and is rarely below -51°F or above 75°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Ust-Kuyga for warm-weather activities is for the entire month of July.

The warm season lasts for 3.4 months, from May 27 to September 9, with an average daily high temperature above 44°F. The hottest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is July, with an average high of 61°F and low of 47°F.

The cold season lasts for 4.0 months, from November 10 to March 9, with an average daily high temperature below -10°F. The coldest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is January, with an average low of -37°F and high of -27°F.

In Ust-Kuyga, 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 Ust-Kuyga begins around May 2 and lasts for 4.4 months, ending around September 14.

The clearest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 41% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 14 and lasts for 7.6 months, ending around May 2.

The cloudiest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is October, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 77% 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 Ust-Kuyga varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.1 months, from May 18 to September 20, with a greater than 16% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Ust-Kuyga is July, with an average of 9.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.9 months, from September 20 to May 18. The month with the fewest wet days in Ust-Kuyga is February, 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 Ust-Kuyga changes throughout the year.

Snow alone is the most common for 7.5 months, from September 26 to May 12. The month with the most days of snow alone in Ust-Kuyga is October, with an average of 1.7 days.

Rain alone is the most common for 4.5 months, from May 12 to September 26. The month with the most days of rain alone in Ust-Kuyga is July, with an average of 9.0 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. Ust-Kuyga experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 4.3 months, from May 13 to September 24, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Ust-Kuyga is July, with an average rainfall of 2.4 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 7.7 months, from September 24 to May 13. The month with the least rain in Ust-Kuyga 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. Ust-Kuyga experiences some seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 9.2 months, from September 8 to June 15, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Ust-Kuyga is May, with an average snowfall of 3.1 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 2.8 months, from June 15 to September 8. The least snow falls around July 24, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

Due to its extreme latitude, Ust-Kuyga experiences polar day (also known as the midnight Sun) during the summer and polar night during the winter. These are periods of time in which the sun is continuously above or below the horizon for more than one day. The precise start and end dates of polar day and night vary from year to year and depend on the precise location and elevation of the observer, and the local topography.

In the summer in Ust-Kuyga during 2024, the Sun is continuously above the horizon for 2.4 months, rising at 1:13 AM on May 16, and not setting again until 12:34 AM on July 28.

In the winter in Ust-Kuyga during 2024, the Sun is continuously below the horizon for 1.8 months, setting at 12:48 PM on November 25, and not rising again until 12:37 PM on January 18.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Ust-Kuyga 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.

The perceived humidity level in Ust-Kuyga, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, staying within 1% of 1% throughout.

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 Ust-Kuyga experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from November 6 to March 7, with average wind speeds of more than 9.8 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 11.4 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.0 months, from March 7 to November 6. The calmest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.0 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Ust-Kuyga varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the east for 1.5 months, from April 24 to June 10 and for 3.9 weeks, from July 21 to August 17, with a peak percentage of 37% on May 20. The wind is most often from the north for 1.4 months, from June 10 to July 21 and for 5.0 days, from August 17 to August 22, with a peak percentage of 32% on July 17. The wind is most often from the south for 8.1 months, from August 22 to April 24, with a peak percentage of 75% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Ust-Kuyga 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 Ust-Kuyga for general outdoor tourist activities is for the entire month of July, with a peak score in the second week of July.

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 Ust-Kuyga for hot-weather activities is for the entire month of July, with a peak score in the second week of July.

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 Ust-Kuyga typically lasts for 2.3 months (71 days), from around June 11 to around August 21, rarely starting before May 26 or after June 26, and rarely ending before July 31 or after September 8.

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 Ust-Kuyga should appear around June 24, only rarely appearing before June 15 or after July 9.

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 extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.0 months, from April 28 to July 29, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 4.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is June, with an average of 5.4 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 5.1 months, from October 2 to March 5, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 1.1 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Ust-Kuyga is December, with an average of 0.0 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Ust-Kuyga are 70.002 deg latitude, 135.549 deg longitude, and 118 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Ust-Kuyga contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 377 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 166 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (2,090 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (4,259 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Ust-Kuyga is covered by grassland (51%), water (21%), and trees (12%), within 10 miles by grassland (68%) and trees (18%), and within 50 miles by grassland (69%) and trees (19%).