Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Zoar South Africa

In Zoar, the summers are warm, the winters are cold and dry, and it is mostly clear year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 38°F to 86°F and is rarely below 32°F or above 95°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Zoar for warm-weather activities is from late November to early April.

The hot season lasts for 3.2 months, from December 6 to March 13, with an average daily high temperature above 81°F. The hottest month of the year in Zoar is January, with an average high of 85°F and low of 57°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.5 months, from May 23 to September 9, with an average daily high temperature below 68°F. The coldest month of the year in Zoar is July, with an average low of 38°F and high of 64°F.

In Zoar, 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 Zoar begins around December 10 and lasts for 3.5 months, ending around March 25.

The clearest month of the year in Zoar is February, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 86% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around March 25 and lasts for 8.5 months, ending around December 10.

The cloudiest month of the year in Zoar is May, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 41% of the time.

Zoar 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 10% to 18%, with an average value of 13%.

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 Zoar is April, with an average of 4.9 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 18% on April 7.

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. Zoar experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Zoar. The month with the most rain in Zoar is April, with an average rainfall of 1.5 inches.

The month with the least rain in Zoar is June, with an average rainfall of 0.8 inches.

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

The earliest sunrise is at 5:17 AM on December 5, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 22 minutes later at 7:39 AM on June 29. The earliest sunset is at 5:32 PM on June 11, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 15 minutes later at 7:48 PM on January 7.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Zoar 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 Zoar, 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 1% of 1% 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 Zoar experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from August 12 to March 2, with average wind speeds of more than 8.2 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Zoar is December, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.2 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.3 months, from March 2 to August 12. The calmest month of the year in Zoar is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.3 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 4.1 months, from April 16 to August 20, with a peak percentage of 47% on July 3. The wind is most often from the west for 4.0 weeks, from August 20 to September 17, with a peak percentage of 34% on September 4. The wind is most often from the south for 7.0 months, from September 17 to April 16, with a peak percentage of 54% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Zoar 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 Zoar for general outdoor tourist activities is from late November to early April, with a peak score in the second week of February.

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 Zoar for hot-weather activities is from late December to early 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).

The growing season in Zoar typically lasts for 9.6 months (292 days), from around August 28 to around June 16, rarely starting after October 3, or ending before May 23.

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 Zoar should appear around July 24, only rarely appearing before July 17 or after August 1.

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 3.5 months, from November 4 to February 18, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.6 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Zoar is December, with an average of 8.6 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.6 months, from April 27 to August 15, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Zoar is June, with an average of 2.9 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Zoar are -33.496 deg latitude, 21.444 deg longitude, and 1,654 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Zoar contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,726 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,925 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (6,736 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (7,543 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Zoar is covered by shrubs (66%), cropland (14%), and bare soil (13%), within 10 miles by shrubs (94%), and within 50 miles by shrubs (84%) and cropland (13%).