Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Ilha de São Miguel Portugal

In Ilha de São Miguel, the summers are short, warm, humid, dry, and mostly clear and the winters are long, cool, windy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 55°F to 77°F and is rarely below 50°F or above 80°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Ilha de São Miguel for hot-weather activities is from mid July to early September.

The warm season lasts for 2.4 months, from July 11 to September 25, with an average daily high temperature above 74°F. The hottest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is August, with an average high of 77°F and low of 68°F.

The cool season lasts for 5.0 months, from December 3 to May 2, with an average daily high temperature below 65°F. The coldest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is February, with an average low of 55°F and high of 62°F.

In Ilha de São Miguel, 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 Ilha de São Miguel begins around June 15 and lasts for 3.0 months, ending around September 13.

The clearest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 77% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 13 and lasts for 9.0 months, ending around June 15.

The cloudiest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is December, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 61% 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 Ilha de São Miguel varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 7.0 months, from September 13 to April 13, with a greater than 17% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Ilha de São Miguel is December, with an average of 9.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 5.0 months, from April 13 to September 13. The month with the fewest wet days in Ilha de São Miguel is July, with an average of 1.3 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. The month with the most days of rain alone in Ilha de São Miguel is December, with an average of 9.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 31% on December 5.

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. Ilha de São Miguel experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 10 months, from August 17 to June 21, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Ilha de São Miguel is December, with an average rainfall of 3.0 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 1.9 months, from June 21 to August 17. The month with the least rain in Ilha de São Miguel is July, with an average rainfall of 0.2 inches.

The length of the day in Ilha de São Miguel varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 33 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 14 hours, 47 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:19 AM on June 13, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 42 minutes later at 8:01 AM on October 26. The earliest sunset is at 5:22 PM on December 6, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 45 minutes later at 9:08 PM on June 27.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Ilha de São Miguel during 2024, starting in the spring on March 31, lasting 6.9 months, and ending in the fall on October 27.

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.

Ilha de São Miguel experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 4.4 months, from June 19 to November 2, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 12% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Ilha de São Miguel is August, with 14.9 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is February 27, 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 Ilha de São Miguel experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.0 months, from October 5 to May 5, with average wind speeds of more than 13.9 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 17.4 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.0 months, from May 5 to October 5. The calmest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 10.2 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Ilha de São Miguel varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the south for 5.0 days, from January 27 to February 1; for 2.3 weeks, from February 26 to March 13; and for 1.9 weeks, from December 4 to December 17, with a peak percentage of 31% on January 29. The wind is most often from the west for 3.6 weeks, from February 1 to February 26; for 3.7 weeks, from March 13 to April 8; for 1.0 weeks, from May 22 to May 29; for 1.3 months, from October 1 to November 10; for 2.6 weeks, from November 16 to December 4; and for 1.3 months, from December 17 to January 27, with a peak percentage of 36% on May 25. The wind is most often from the north for 1.5 months, from April 8 to May 22; for 4.1 months, from May 29 to October 1; and for 6.0 days, from November 10 to November 16, with a peak percentage of 41% on July 5.

Ilha de São Miguel 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 2.6 months, from July 17 to October 4, with an average temperature above 71°F. The month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 73°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.8 months, from December 21 to May 15, with an average temperature below 63°F. The month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel with the coolest water is March, with an average temperature of 61°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Ilha de São Miguel 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 Ilha de São Miguel for general outdoor tourist activities is from late June to early September, with a peak score in the last 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 Ilha de São Miguel for hot-weather activities is from mid July to early September, with a peak score in the second 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).

Temperatures in Ilha de São Miguel are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

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.

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 3.5 months, from May 7 to August 22, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.4 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is July, with an average of 7.5 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.5 months, from October 29 to February 13, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.1 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Ilha de São Miguel is December, with an average of 2.0 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Ilha de São Miguel are 37.776 deg latitude, -25.495 deg longitude, and 0 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Ilha de São Miguel is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 0 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 0 feet. Within 10 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet). Within 50 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Ilha de São Miguel is covered by grassland (60%), trees (19%), and snow and glaciers (13%), within 10 miles by water (64%) and grassland (17%), and within 50 miles by water (97%).