Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Matmata Tunisia

In Matmata, the summers are hot, arid, and clear and the winters are cold, dry, windy, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 39°F to 92°F and is rarely below 32°F or above 102°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Matmata for hot-weather activities is from mid June to mid September.

The hot season lasts for 3.3 months, from June 11 to September 20, with an average daily high temperature above 85°F. The hottest month of the year in Matmata is August, with an average high of 91°F and low of 71°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.4 months, from November 25 to March 7, with an average daily high temperature below 64°F. The coldest month of the year in Matmata is January, with an average low of 39°F and high of 58°F.

In Matmata, 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 Matmata begins around June 12 and lasts for 3.0 months, ending around September 12.

The clearest month of the year in Matmata is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 97% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 12 and lasts for 9.0 months, ending around June 12.

The cloudiest month of the year in Matmata is October, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 35% of the time.

Matmata does not experience significant seasonal variation in the frequency of wet days (i.e., those with greater than 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation). The frequency ranges from 0% to 10%, with an average value of 5%.

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 Matmata is October, with an average of 2.6 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 10% on September 25.

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. Matmata experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 6.0 months, from September 22 to March 21, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Matmata is December, with an average rainfall of 0.6 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 6.0 months, from March 21 to September 22. The month with the least rain in Matmata is July, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Matmata varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 56 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 14 hours, 23 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:09 AM on June 12, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 16 minutes later at 7:25 AM on January 9. The earliest sunset is at 5:11 PM on December 4, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 22 minutes later at 7:34 PM on June 28.

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

Matmata experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.9 months, from June 20 to October 17, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 10% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Matmata is August, with 11.4 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is February 4, 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 Matmata experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.1 months, from March 25 to July 28, with average wind speeds of more than 10.2 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Matmata is June, with an average hourly wind speed of 11.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.9 months, from July 28 to March 25. The calmest month of the year in Matmata is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.0 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the east for 7.4 months, from March 16 to October 28, with a peak percentage of 76% on July 5. The wind is most often from the west for 4.6 months, from October 28 to March 16, with a peak percentage of 55% on January 1.

Matmata 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 significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.3 months, from July 2 to October 11, with an average temperature above 78°F. The month of the year in Matmata with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 83°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.7 months, from December 17 to April 6, with an average temperature below 62°F. The month of the year in Matmata with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 57°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Matmata 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 Matmata for general outdoor tourist activities are from early April to early July and from mid September to early November, with a peak score in the last week of May.

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 Matmata for hot-weather activities is from mid June to mid September, with a peak score in the third week of July.

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 Matmata typically lasts for 11 months (338 days), from around January 27 to around December 30, rarely starting after February 28, or ending before December 5.

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 Matmata should appear around February 8, only rarely appearing before January 27 or after February 23.

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 3.8 months, from April 29 to August 21, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Matmata is July, with an average of 8.0 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from October 29 to February 6, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Matmata is December, with an average of 3.0 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Matmata are 33.544 deg latitude, 9.972 deg longitude, and 1,240 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Matmata contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 971 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,189 feet. Within 10 miles also contains very significant variations in elevation (1,624 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (2,418 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Matmata is covered by bare soil (60%) and grassland (40%), within 10 miles by bare soil (58%) and grassland (38%), and within 50 miles by bare soil (53%) and water (15%).