Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Bekwai Ghana

In Bekwai, the wet season is oppressive and mostly cloudy, the dry season is muggy and partly cloudy, and it is hot year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 69°F to 95°F and is rarely below 64°F or above 101°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Bekwai for hot-weather activities is from late November to late January.

The hot season lasts for 2.1 months, from January 17 to March 20, with an average daily high temperature above 93°F. The hottest month of the year in Bekwai is February, with an average high of 95°F and low of 73°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.9 months, from June 8 to October 4, with an average daily high temperature below 86°F. The coldest month of the year in Bekwai is August, with an average low of 71°F and high of 84°F.

In Bekwai, 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 Bekwai begins around October 6 and lasts for 4.1 months, ending around February 10.

The clearest month of the year in Bekwai is December, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 60% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 10 and lasts for 7.9 months, ending around October 6.

The cloudiest month of the year in Bekwai is April, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 78% 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 Bekwai varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 7.9 months, from March 13 to November 10, with a greater than 40% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Bekwai is June, with an average of 22.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 4.1 months, from November 10 to March 13. The month with the fewest wet days in Bekwai is January, with an average of 1.6 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 Bekwai is June, with an average of 22.0 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 76% on June 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. Bekwai experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Bekwai. The month with the most rain in Bekwai is June, with an average rainfall of 7.3 inches.

The month with the least rain in Bekwai is January, with an average rainfall of 0.3 inches.

The length of the day in Bekwai does not vary substantially over the course of the year, staying within 29 minutes of 12 hours throughout. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 45 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 12 hours, 30 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:49 AM on May 24, and the latest sunrise is 35 minutes later at 6:24 AM on February 1. The earliest sunset is at 5:45 PM on November 11, and the latest sunset is 40 minutes later at 6:26 PM on July 15.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Bekwai 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.

Bekwai experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 11 months, from February 5 to December 24, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 68% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Bekwai is October, with 31.0 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Bekwai is January, with 18.4 days that are muggy or worse.

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 Bekwai experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from June 9 to September 15, with average wind speeds of more than 6.0 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Bekwai is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.3 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.8 months, from September 15 to June 9. The calmest month of the year in Bekwai is November, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.5 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 12 months, from January 2 to December 23, with a peak percentage of 78% on May 28. The wind is most often from the east for 1.4 weeks, from December 23 to January 2, with a peak percentage of 31% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Bekwai 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 times of year to visit Bekwai for general outdoor tourist activities are from mid July to late August and from mid December to mid January, with a peak score in the first week of August.

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 Bekwai for hot-weather activities is from late November to late January, with a peak score in the third week of December.

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 Bekwai 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.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Bekwai are 6.453 deg latitude, -1.577 deg longitude, and 758 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Bekwai contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 272 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 687 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,109 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (2,323 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Bekwai is covered by cropland (47%), grassland (22%), trees (16%), and shrubs (14%), within 10 miles by cropland (46%) and grassland (21%), and within 50 miles by cropland (41%) and trees (27%).