Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Walvis Bay Namibia

The climate in Walvis Bay is comfortable and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 50°F to 71°F and is rarely below 45°F or above 86°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Walvis Bay for warm-weather activities is from mid November to late May.

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

In Walvis Bay, 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 Walvis Bay begins around March 6 and lasts for 9.5 months, ending around December 23.

The clearest month of the year in Walvis Bay is May, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 93% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around December 23 and lasts for 2.5 months, ending around March 6.

The cloudiest month of the year in Walvis Bay is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 25% of the time.

Walvis Bay 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 3%, with an average value of 1%.

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 Walvis Bay is March, with an average of 0.7 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 3% on April 5.

Rainfall

The sliding 31-day quantity of rainfall in Walvis Bay does not vary significantly over the course of the year, staying within 0.1 inches of 0.1 inches throughout.

The length of the day in Walvis Bay varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 43 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 13 hours, 33 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:07 AM on November 28, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 36 minutes later at 7:43 AM on July 3. The earliest sunset is at 6:23 PM on June 7, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 29 minutes later at 7:52 PM on January 14.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Walvis Bay 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.

The perceived humidity level in Walvis Bay, 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, staying within 5% of 5% 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 Walvis Bay experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.0 months, from May 29 to November 28, with average wind speeds of more than 8.7 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Walvis Bay is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.4 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 6.0 months, from November 28 to May 29. The calmest month of the year in Walvis Bay is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.9 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Walvis Bay is from the south throughout the year.

Walvis Bay 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 2.5 months, from January 9 to March 25, with an average temperature above 62°F. The month of the year in Walvis Bay with the warmest water is February, with an average temperature of 64°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.7 months, from June 7 to October 29, with an average temperature below 58°F. The month of the year in Walvis Bay with the coolest water is August, with an average temperature of 56°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Walvis Bay 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 Walvis Bay for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid November to late May, with a peak score in the last week of March.

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 Walvis Bay for hot-weather activities is from mid March to mid April, with a peak score in the last week of March.

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 Walvis Bay 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 significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.7 months, from October 24 to February 15, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.9 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Walvis Bay is December, with an average of 8.7 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.1 months, from May 5 to August 10, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.3 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Walvis Bay is June, with an average of 4.6 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Walvis Bay are -22.958 deg latitude, 14.505 deg longitude, and 20 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Walvis Bay contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 125 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 15 feet. Within 10 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (377 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (2,884 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Walvis Bay is covered by sparse vegetation (40%), bare soil (25%), grassland (17%), and water (16%), within 10 miles by bare soil (49%) and water (39%), and within 50 miles by water (48%) and bare soil (46%).