Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Pilane Botswana

In Pilane, the summers are long, hot, and partly cloudy and the winters are short, cool, dry, and clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 41°F to 89°F and is rarely below 34°F or above 98°F.

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

The hot season lasts for 5.9 months, from September 20 to March 16, with an average daily high temperature above 86°F. The hottest month of the year in Pilane is January, with an average high of 89°F and low of 69°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.2 months, from May 27 to August 2, with an average daily high temperature below 75°F. The coldest month of the year in Pilane is July, with an average low of 41°F and high of 73°F.

In Pilane, 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 Pilane begins around March 28 and lasts for 6.5 months, ending around October 14.

The clearest month of the year in Pilane is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 94% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 14 and lasts for 5.5 months, ending around March 28.

The cloudiest month of the year in Pilane is December, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 38% 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 Pilane varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.3 months, from October 22 to March 31, with a greater than 20% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Pilane is December, with an average of 11.7 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.7 months, from March 31 to October 22. The month with the fewest wet days in Pilane is July, 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 Pilane is December, with an average of 11.7 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 39% on December 16.

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. Pilane experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 7.5 months, from September 22 to May 6, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Pilane is January, with an average rainfall of 3.0 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.5 months, from May 6 to September 22. The month with the least rain in Pilane is July, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Pilane varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 37 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 13 hours, 39 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:18 AM on November 29, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 42 minutes later at 7:00 AM on July 3. The earliest sunset is at 5:34 PM on June 7, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 35 minutes later at 7:09 PM on January 13.

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

Pilane experiences some seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 4.2 months, from November 26 to April 2, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 7% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Pilane is January, with 7.4 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is July 8, 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 Pilane experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from August 12 to December 13, with average wind speeds of more than 7.9 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Pilane is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.6 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.0 months, from December 13 to August 12. The calmest month of the year in Pilane is May, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.3 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the east for 3.3 months, from January 10 to April 20 and for 1.1 months, from May 4 to June 6, with a peak percentage of 50% on February 22. The wind is most often from the north for 2.0 weeks, from April 20 to May 4 and for 7.1 months, from June 6 to January 10, with a peak percentage of 36% on April 20.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Pilane 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 Pilane for general outdoor tourist activities are from early April to late May and from late July to early October, with a peak score in the last week of August.

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 Pilane for hot-weather activities is from mid September to early April, with a peak score in the last week of September.

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).

While it does not do so every year, freezing temperatures are seen in Pilane over some winters. The day least likely to be in the growing season is June 30, with a 69% chance.

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 Pilane should appear around July 12, only rarely appearing before July 10 or after July 15.

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 4.6 months, from October 10 to February 27, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Pilane is December, with an average of 7.7 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.8 months, from May 7 to July 31, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.1 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Pilane is June, with an average of 4.5 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Pilane are -24.450 deg latitude, 26.133 deg longitude, and 3,140 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Pilane is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 95 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 3,133 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (837 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (2,087 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Pilane is covered by grassland (36%), cropland (34%), and shrubs (18%), within 10 miles by grassland (57%) and shrubs (19%), and within 50 miles by grassland (41%) and shrubs (32%).