Average Weather in Sara Kunda Gambia

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4. Sara Kunda

In Sara Kunda, the wet season is hot, oppressive, and overcast and the dry season is sweltering and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 65°F to 104°F and is rarely below 60°F or above 109°F.

The hot season lasts for 3.1 months, from February 28 to May 30, with an average daily high temperature above 101°F. The hottest day of the year is April 14, with an average high of 104°F and low of 73°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.7 months, from July 13 to October 3, with an average daily high temperature below 92°F. The coldest day of the year is January 6, with an average low of 65°F and high of 94°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 Sara Kunda, 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 Sara Kunda begins around November 13 and lasts for 7.4 months, ending around June 25. On May 3, the clearest day of the year, the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 63% of the time, and overcast or mostly cloudy 37% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around June 25 and lasts for 4.6 months, ending around November 13. On August 31, the cloudiest day of the year, the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 78% of the time, and clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 22% 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 Sara Kunda varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.3 months, from June 26 to October 5, with a greater than 43% chance of a given day being a wet day. The chance of a wet day peaks at 85% on August 19.

The drier season lasts 8.7 months, from October 5 to June 26. The smallest chance of a wet day is 0% on January 27.

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 85% on August 19.

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. Sara Kunda experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 5.3 months, from May 22 to October 31, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The most rain falls during the 31 days centered around August 22, with an average total accumulation of 9.5 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from October 31 to May 22. The least rain falls around March 1, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Sara Kunda varies over the course of the year. In 2017, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 20 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 12 hours, 56 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:33 AM on June 1, and the latest sunrise is 56 minutes later at 7:29 AM on January 23. The earliest sunset is at 6:31 PM on November 19, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 2 minutes later at 7:33 PM on July 8.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Sara Kunda 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.

Sara Kunda experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 6.4 months, from May 12 to November 24, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 26% of the time. The muggiest day of the year is August 29, with muggy conditions 100% of the time.

The least muggy day of the year is January 14, 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 Sara Kunda experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.4 months, from December 2 to July 13, with average wind speeds of more than 3.9 miles per hour. The windiest day of the year is January 30, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.2 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.6 months, from July 13 to December 2. The calmest day of the year is October 9, with an average hourly wind speed of 2.7 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 3.8 months, from January 8 to May 1, with a peak percentage of 65% on March 11. The wind is most often from the west for 6.0 months, from May 1 to November 2, with a peak percentage of 74% on June 18. The wind is most often from the east for 2.2 months, from November 2 to January 8, with a peak percentage of 51% on January 1.

Sara Kunda 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 4.9 months, from June 26 to November 22, with an average temperature above 80°F. The day of the year with the warmest water is October 20, with an average temperature of 83°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.8 months, from January 8 to May 1, with an average temperature below 72°F. The day of the year with the coolest water is March 4, with an average temperature of 69°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 2.7 months, from March 6 to May 27, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.6 kWh. The brightest day of the year is April 12, with an average of 7.1 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 5.6 months, from July 16 to January 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.1 kWh. The darkest day of the year is August 24, with an average of 4.6 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Sara Kunda are 13.533 deg latitude, -15.417 deg longitude, and 43 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Sara Kunda is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 95 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 40 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (187 feet). Within 50 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (249 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Sara Kunda is covered by cropland (64%), grassland (13%), and trees (10%), within 10 miles by cropland (42%) and mangroves (16%), and within 50 miles by cropland (45%) and trees (27%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Sara Kunda, 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 are 3 weather stations near enough to contribute to our estimation of the temperature and dew point in Sara Kunda.

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

The estimated value at Sara Kunda is computed as the weighted average of the individual contributions from each station, with weights proportional to the inverse of the distance between Sara Kunda and a given station.

The stations contributing to this reconstruction are: Kaolack Airport (46%, 97 kilometers, northwest); Banjul International Airport (28%, 136 kilometers, west); and Ziguinchor Airport (26%, 144 kilometers, southwest).

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.