Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Ivalo Finland

In Ivalo, the summers are short, cool, and mostly cloudy and the winters are long, frigid, snowy, and overcast. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 1°F to 64°F and is rarely below -23°F or above 76°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Ivalo for warm-weather activities is from early July to early August.

The warm season lasts for 2.8 months, from June 7 to September 1, with an average daily high temperature above 55°F. The hottest month of the year in Ivalo is July, with an average high of 64°F and low of 49°F.

The cold season lasts for 4.0 months, from November 14 to March 14, with an average daily high temperature below 26°F. The coldest month of the year in Ivalo is January, with an average low of 2°F and high of 17°F.

In Ivalo, 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 Ivalo begins around April 15 and lasts for 4.8 months, ending around September 10.

The clearest month of the year in Ivalo is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 45% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 10 and lasts for 7.2 months, ending around April 15.

The cloudiest month of the year in Ivalo is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 82% 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 Ivalo varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.6 months, from May 9 to October 29, with a greater than 25% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Ivalo is July, with an average of 11.6 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.4 months, from October 29 to May 9. The month with the fewest wet days in Ivalo is March, with an average of 4.2 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. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation in Ivalo changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 6.6 months, from April 12 to October 30. The month with the most days of rain alone in Ivalo is July, with an average of 11.6 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 5.4 months, from October 30 to April 12. The month with the most days of snow alone in Ivalo is January, with an average of 4.7 days.

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. Ivalo experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from April 16 to November 5, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Ivalo is July, with an average rainfall of 2.8 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 5.3 months, from November 5 to April 16. The month with the least rain in Ivalo is February, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

Snowfall

As with rainfall, we consider the snowfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Ivalo experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 7.9 months, from September 27 to May 24, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Ivalo is November, with an average snowfall of 6.5 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 4.1 months, from May 24 to September 27. The least snow falls around August 1, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

Due to its extreme latitude, Ivalo experiences polar day (also known as the midnight Sun) during the summer and polar night during the winter. These are periods of time in which the sun is continuously above or below the horizon for more than one day. The precise start and end dates of polar day and night vary from year to year and depend on the precise location and elevation of the observer, and the local topography.

In the summer in Ivalo during 2025, the Sun is continuously above the horizon for 2.0 months, rising at 1:31 AM on May 22, and not setting again until 1:06 AM on July 21.

In the winter in Ivalo during 2025, the Sun is continuously below the horizon for 1.2 months, setting at 12:03 PM on December 3, and not rising again until 11:51 AM on January 9.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Ivalo during 2025, starting in the spring on March 30, lasting 6.9 months, and ending in the fall on October 26.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2025. 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 Ivalo, 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, remaining a virtually constant 0% 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 Ivalo experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 5.6 months, from November 23 to May 12, with average wind speeds of more than 6.5 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Ivalo is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.1 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 6.4 months, from May 12 to November 23. The calmest month of the year in Ivalo is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.9 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 1.2 months, from May 20 to June 26, with a peak percentage of 30% on June 15. The wind is most often from the south for 11 months, from June 26 to May 20, with a peak percentage of 41% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Ivalo 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 Ivalo for general outdoor tourist activities is from early July to early August, with a peak score in the third week of July.

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 Ivalo for hot-weather activities is from mid to late July, with a peak score in the last week of July.

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 Ivalo typically lasts for 3.2 months (99 days), from around May 27 to around September 3, rarely starting before May 11 or after June 12, and rarely ending before August 15 or after September 25.

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 Ivalo should appear around June 15, only rarely appearing before June 1 or after July 2.

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 2.7 months, from May 14 to August 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 4.3 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Ivalo is June, with an average of 5.2 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 5.3 months, from September 29 to March 7, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 1.1 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Ivalo is December, with an average of 0.0 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Ivalo are 68.660 deg latitude, 27.539 deg longitude, and 394 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Ivalo contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 338 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 432 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,099 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (2,123 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Ivalo is covered by trees (61%) and artificial surfaces (13%), within 10 miles by trees (81%) and water (12%), and within 50 miles by trees (67%) and herbaceous vegetation (13%).