Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Vredendal South Africa

In Vredendal, the summers are hot, arid, and clear and the winters are cool and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 46°F to 88°F and is rarely below 40°F or above 98°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Vredendal for hot-weather activities is from mid December to mid March.

The hot season lasts for 3.8 months, from December 6 to March 31, with an average daily high temperature above 84°F. The hottest month of the year in Vredendal is February, with an average high of 88°F and low of 63°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from May 30 to August 30, with an average daily high temperature below 73°F. The coldest month of the year in Vredendal is July, with an average low of 46°F and high of 69°F.

In Vredendal, 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 Vredendal begins around November 20 and lasts for 4.3 months, ending around March 29.

The clearest month of the year in Vredendal is February, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 92% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around March 29 and lasts for 7.7 months, ending around November 20.

The cloudiest month of the year in Vredendal is May, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 33% 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 Vredendal varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.5 months, from April 29 to September 12, with a greater than 9% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Vredendal is June, with an average of 4.7 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.5 months, from September 12 to April 29. The month with the fewest wet days in Vredendal is February, with an average of 0.7 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 Vredendal is June, with an average of 4.7 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 16% on June 15.

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. Vredendal experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 5.7 months, from April 6 to September 27, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Vredendal is June, with an average rainfall of 1.4 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 6.3 months, from September 27 to April 6. The month with the least rain in Vredendal is February, with an average rainfall of 0.1 inches.

The length of the day in Vredendal varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 5 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 14 hours, 13 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:33 AM on December 4, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 13 minutes later at 7:46 AM on June 30. The earliest sunset is at 5:49 PM on June 11, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 6 minutes later at 7:55 PM on January 9.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Vredendal 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 Vredendal, 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 2% of 2% 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 Vredendal experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.6 months, from October 3 to February 22, with average wind speeds of more than 9.0 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Vredendal is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 10.0 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.4 months, from February 22 to October 3. The calmest month of the year in Vredendal is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.9 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 3.3 months, from May 1 to August 11, with a peak percentage of 35% on June 26. The wind is most often from the west for 1.7 weeks, from August 11 to August 23, with a peak percentage of 27% on August 22. The wind is most often from the south for 8.3 months, from August 23 to May 1, with a peak percentage of 48% on January 1.

Vredendal 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 3.2 months, from December 11 to March 18, with an average temperature above 61°F. The month of the year in Vredendal with the warmest water is January, with an average temperature of 63°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.2 months, from June 3 to September 9, with an average temperature below 57°F. The month of the year in Vredendal with the coolest water is July, with an average temperature of 56°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Vredendal 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 Vredendal for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid September to mid May, with a peak score in the first week of January.

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 Vredendal for hot-weather activities is from mid December to mid March, with a peak score in the last week of January.

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 Vredendal 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 extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.6 months, from November 3 to February 19, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.9 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Vredendal is December, with an average of 9.0 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.6 months, from April 29 to August 16, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.3 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Vredendal is June, with an average of 3.1 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Vredendal are -31.668 deg latitude, 18.501 deg longitude, and 118 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Vredendal contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 295 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 108 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,204 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (4,757 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Vredendal is covered by cropland (73%), shrubs (14%), and artificial surfaces (13%), within 10 miles by shrubs (59%) and cropland (40%), and within 50 miles by shrubs (49%) and water (31%).