Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Afor-Oru Nigeria

In Afor-Oru, the wet season is oppressive and overcast, the dry season is muggy and mostly cloudy, and it is warm year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 66°F to 86°F and is rarely below 59°F or above 89°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Afor-Oru for hot-weather activities is from mid November to mid February.

The temperature in Afor-Oru varies so little throughout the year that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss hot and cold seasons.

In Afor-Oru, 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 Afor-Oru begins around November 23 and lasts for 2.5 months, ending around February 10.

The clearest month of the year in Afor-Oru is December, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 42% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around February 10 and lasts for 9.4 months, ending around November 23.

The cloudiest month of the year in Afor-Oru is April, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 86% 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 Afor-Oru varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 7.3 months, from March 29 to November 7, with a greater than 44% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Afor-Oru is September, with an average of 24.8 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 4.7 months, from November 7 to March 29. The month with the fewest wet days in Afor-Oru is January, with an average of 1.4 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 Afor-Oru is September, with an average of 24.8 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 84% on September 10.

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. Afor-Oru experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 10 months, from February 1 to December 14, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Afor-Oru is September, with an average rainfall of 10.9 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 1.6 months, from December 14 to February 1. The month with the least rain in Afor-Oru is January, with an average rainfall of 0.3 inches.

The length of the day in Afor-Oru does not vary substantially over the course of the year, staying within 26 minutes of 12 hours throughout. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 11 hours, 48 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 12 hours, 27 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:15 AM on May 23, and the latest sunrise is 32 minutes later at 6:47 AM on February 2. The earliest sunset is at 6:11 PM on November 10, and the latest sunset is 38 minutes later at 6:49 PM on July 17.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Afor-Oru 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.

Afor-Oru experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 11 months, from January 27 to December 17, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 65% of the time.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Afor-Oru is January, with 18.2 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 Afor-Oru experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from May 31 to September 30, with average wind speeds of more than 5.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Afor-Oru is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.6 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.0 months, from September 30 to May 31. The calmest month of the year in Afor-Oru is November, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.0 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Afor-Oru varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the west for 2.0 months, from January 24 to March 23 and for 5.7 months, from June 9 to November 30, with a peak percentage of 65% on September 14. The wind is most often from the south for 2.5 months, from March 23 to June 9, with a peak percentage of 58% on April 18. The wind is most often from the north for 1.8 months, from November 30 to January 24, with a peak percentage of 55% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Afor-Oru 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 Afor-Oru for general outdoor tourist activities is from early December to mid January, with a peak score in the last week of December.

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 Afor-Oru for hot-weather activities is from mid November to mid February, 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 Afor-Oru 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 some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.2 months, from December 15 to February 21, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 4.6 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Afor-Oru is January, with an average of 4.9 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 1.3 months, from September 27 to November 6, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.9 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Afor-Oru is October, with an average of 3.7 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Afor-Oru are 5.541 deg latitude, 7.268 deg longitude, and 449 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Afor-Oru contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 157 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 504 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (571 feet). Within 50 miles contains significant variations in elevation (1,490 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Afor-Oru is covered by grassland (41%), cropland (29%), and trees (26%), within 10 miles by cropland (36%) and trees (22%), and within 50 miles by cropland (36%) and trees (23%).