Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Keetmanshoop Namibia

In Keetmanshoop, the summers are long and hot; the winters are short, cool, and windy; and it is dry and mostly clear year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 46°F to 95°F and is rarely below 38°F or above 102°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit Keetmanshoop for hot-weather activities is from late October to early April.

The hot season lasts for 4.3 months, from November 10 to March 20, with an average daily high temperature above 90°F. The hottest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is January, with an average high of 95°F and low of 69°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.8 months, from May 24 to August 17, with an average daily high temperature below 76°F. The coldest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is July, with an average low of 47°F and high of 71°F.

The clearest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 88% of the time.

The cloudiest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is October, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 19% 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 Keetmanshoop varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.3 months, from January 2 to April 11, with a greater than 9% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Keetmanshoop is February, with an average of 4.7 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.7 months, from April 11 to January 2. The month with the fewest wet days in Keetmanshoop is August, with an average of 0.1 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 Keetmanshoop is February, 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 18% on January 31.

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. Keetmanshoop experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 4.9 months, from November 28 to April 24, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Keetmanshoop is February, with an average rainfall of 1.3 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 7.1 months, from April 24 to November 28. The month with the least rain in Keetmanshoop is August, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Keetmanshoop varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 28 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 13 hours, 49 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:46 AM on December 1, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 50 minutes later at 7:36 AM on July 2. The earliest sunset is at 6:01 PM on June 9, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 44 minutes later at 7:45 PM on January 12.

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

The windier part of the year lasts for 8.0 months, from May 24 to January 25, with average wind speeds of more than 9.1 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is November, with an average hourly wind speed of 10.0 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.0 months, from January 25 to May 24. The calmest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.1 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 5.6 months, from March 19 to September 8, with a peak percentage of 51% on July 2. The wind is most often from the south for 6.4 months, from September 8 to March 19, with a peak percentage of 56% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Keetmanshoop 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 Keetmanshoop for general outdoor tourist activities are from early April to early June and from early August to mid October, with a peak score in the first 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 Keetmanshoop for hot-weather activities is from late October to early April, with a peak score in the second 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 Keetmanshoop 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 3.3 months, from October 26 to February 6, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 8.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is December, with an average of 9.0 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from May 1 to August 9, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.2 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Keetmanshoop is June, with an average of 4.3 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Keetmanshoop are -26.583 deg latitude, 18.133 deg longitude, and 3,219 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Keetmanshoop contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 423 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 3,243 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,122 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (4,009 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Keetmanshoop is covered by sparse vegetation (97%), within 10 miles by sparse vegetation (95%), and within 50 miles by sparse vegetation (58%) and grassland (38%).