Average Weather in Weipa Australia

1. World
2. Australia
3. Queensland
4. Cook Shire
5. Weipa

In Weipa, the wet season is oppressive and overcast; the dry season is muggy, windy, and partly cloudy; and it is hot year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 67°F to 94°F and is rarely below 63°F or above 97°F.

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the entire year of hourly average temperatures. The horizontal axis is the day of the year, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

In Weipa, 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 Weipa begins around April 9 and lasts for 7.3 months, ending around November 18. On August 19, the clearest day of the year, the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 49% of the time, and overcast or mostly cloudy 51% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 18 and lasts for 4.7 months, ending around April 9. On January 8, the cloudiest day of the year, the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 88% of the time, and clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 12% 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 Weipa varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.2 months, from November 28 to April 4, with a greater than 43% chance of a given day being a wet day. The chance of a wet day peaks at 86% on February 9.

The drier season lasts 7.8 months, from April 4 to November 28. The smallest chance of a wet day is 1% on July 16.

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 throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 86% on February 9.

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. Weipa experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 7.4 months, from October 10 to May 23, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The most rain falls during the 31 days centered around February 15, with an average total accumulation of 18.4 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.6 months, from May 23 to October 10. The least rain falls around July 19, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Weipa does not vary substantially over the course of the year, staying within 52 minutes of 12 hours throughout. In 2017, the shortest day is June 21, with 11 hours, 23 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 12 hours, 52 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:56 AM on November 20, and the latest sunrise is 59 minutes later at 6:55 AM on July 11. The earliest sunset is at 6:13 PM on May 30, and the latest sunset is 53 minutes later at 7:06 PM on January 24.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Weipa during 2017.

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.

Weipa experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 9.5 months, from September 16 to July 2, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 49% of the time. The muggiest day of the year is February 16, with muggy conditions 100% of the time.

The least muggy day of the year is August 5, with muggy conditions 32% of the time.

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 Weipa experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.9 months, from April 6 to November 4, with average wind speeds of more than 5.6 miles per hour. The windiest day of the year is July 14, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.8 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.1 months, from November 4 to April 6. The calmest day of the year is December 12, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.4 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the west for 1.7 months, from January 11 to March 3, with a peak percentage of 45% on February 12. The wind is most often from the east for 10 months, from March 3 to January 11, with a peak percentage of 40% on January 1.

Weipa 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 5.0 months, from November 18 to April 17, with an average temperature above 84°F. The day of the year with the warmest water is December 26, with an average temperature of 85°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 2.6 months, from June 25 to September 13, with an average temperature below 79°F. The day of the year with the coolest water is August 5, with an average temperature of 77°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 2.3 months, from September 11 to November 19, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.8 kWh. The brightest day of the year is October 20, with an average of 7.3 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.7 months, from January 1 to March 23, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.2 kWh. The darkest day of the year is February 26, with an average of 4.7 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Weipa are -12.623 deg latitude, 141.879 deg longitude, and 39 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Weipa contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 131 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 32 feet. Within 10 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (259 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (679 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Weipa is covered by water (36%), artificial surfaces (22%), trees (20%), and sparse vegetation (10%), within 10 miles by trees (41%) and water (32%), and within 50 miles by trees (42%) and water (38%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Weipa, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

Temperature and Dew Point

There is only a single weather station, Weipa Airport, in our network suitable to be used as a proxy for the historical temperature and dew point records of Weipa.

At a distance of 8 kilometers from Weipa, closer than our threshold of 150 kilometers, this station is deemed sufficiently nearby to be relied upon as our primary source for temperature and dew point records.

The station records are corrected for the elevation difference between the station and Weipa according to the International Standard Atmosphere , and by the relative change present in the MERRA-2 satellite-era reanalysis between the two locations.

Please note that the station records themselves may additionally have been back-filled using other nearby stations or the MERRA-2 reanalysis.

Other Data

All data relating to the Sun's position (e.g., sunrise and sunset) are computed using astronomical formulas from the book, Astronomical Tables of the Sun, Moon and Planets , by Jean Meeus.

All other weather data, including cloud cover, precipitation, wind speed and direction, and solar flux, come from NASA's MERRA-2 Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis . This reanalysis combines a variety of wide-area measurements in a state-of-the-art global meteorological model to reconstruct the hourly history of weather throughout the world on a 50-kilometer grid.

Land Use data comes from the Global Land Cover SHARE database , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Elevation data comes from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) , published by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Names, locations, and time zones of places and some airports come from the GeoNames Geographical Database .

Time zones for aiports and weather stations are provided by AskGeo.com .

Maps are © Esri, with data from National Geographic, Esri, DeLorme, NAVTEQ, UNEP-WCMC, USGS, NASA, ESA, METI, NRCAN, GEBCO, NOAA, and iPC.