Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Valdivia Chile

In Valdivia, the summers are short, comfortable, and mostly clear and the winters are long, cold, wet, and mostly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 41°F to 72°F and is rarely below 31°F or above 81°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Valdivia for warm-weather activities is from late December to late February.

The warm season lasts for 2.8 months, from December 21 to March 15, with an average daily high temperature above 68°F. The hottest month of the year in Valdivia is January, with an average high of 71°F and low of 50°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.7 months, from May 20 to September 11, with an average daily high temperature below 56°F. The coldest month of the year in Valdivia is July, with an average low of 41°F and high of 52°F.

In Valdivia, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Valdivia begins around November 1 and lasts for 5.3 months, ending around April 10.

The clearest month of the year in Valdivia is February, 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 April 10 and lasts for 6.7 months, ending around November 1.

The cloudiest month of the year in Valdivia is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 71% 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 Valdivia varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.4 months, from May 1 to September 12, with a greater than 33% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Valdivia is June, with an average of 15.6 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.6 months, from September 12 to May 1. The month with the fewest wet days in Valdivia is February, with an average of 4.0 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 Valdivia is June, with an average of 15.5 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 54% on May 31.

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. Valdivia experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Valdivia. The month with the most rain in Valdivia is June, with an average rainfall of 7.5 inches.

The month with the least rain in Valdivia is January, with an average rainfall of 1.3 inches.

The length of the day in Valdivia varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2023, the shortest day is June 21, with 9 hours, 21 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 22, with 15 hours, 0 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:18 AM on December 8, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 57 minutes later at 8:15 AM on June 28. The earliest sunset is at 5:34 PM on June 14, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 50 minutes later at 9:24 PM on January 3.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Valdivia during 2023, starting in the spring on September 3 and ending in the fall on April 1.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2023. 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 Valdivia, 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, remaining a virtually constant 0% 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 Valdivia experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from May 13 to September 12, with average wind speeds of more than 6.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Valdivia is June, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.7 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.0 months, from September 12 to May 13. The calmest month of the year in Valdivia is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.8 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 4.1 months, from May 3 to September 7, with a peak percentage of 43% on July 21. The wind is most often from the south for 7.9 months, from September 7 to May 3, with a peak percentage of 52% on January 1.

Valdivia 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 3.1 months, from December 21 to March 23, with an average temperature above 57°F. The month of the year in Valdivia with the warmest water is January, with an average temperature of 58°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.5 months, from June 20 to October 3, with an average temperature below 53°F. The month of the year in Valdivia with the coolest water is August, with an average temperature of 52°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Valdivia 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 Valdivia for general outdoor tourist activities is from late December to late February, with a peak score in the last week of January.

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 Valdivia for hot-weather activities is from mid January to mid February, with a peak score in the last week of January.

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 Valdivia typically lasts for 8.6 months (262 days), from around September 2 to around May 21, rarely starting before July 29 or after September 30, and rarely ending before April 18 or after June 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 Valdivia should appear around September 16, only rarely appearing before September 5 or after September 30.

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 November 17 to February 19, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Valdivia is January, with an average of 8.0 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from April 26 to August 26, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.7 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Valdivia is June, with an average of 1.4 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Valdivia are -39.814 deg latitude, -73.246 deg longitude, and 56 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Valdivia contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 312 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 35 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (2,385 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (4,537 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Valdivia is covered by shrubs (39%), trees (27%), and water (23%), within 10 miles by trees (71%) and water (16%), and within 50 miles by water (44%) and trees (42%).