Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Nhlangano Swaziland

In Nhlangano, the wet season is warm and partly cloudy and the dry season is comfortable and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 44°F to 84°F and is rarely below 37°F or above 90°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best times of year to visit Nhlangano for warm-weather activities are from late February to late May and from late July to late September.

The warm season lasts for 1.5 months, from January 11 to February 26, with an average daily high temperature above 81°F. The hottest month of the year in Nhlangano is February, with an average high of 83°F and low of 64°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.3 months, from May 28 to August 7, with an average daily high temperature below 73°F. The coldest month of the year in Nhlangano is June, with an average low of 45°F and high of 71°F.

In Nhlangano, 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 Nhlangano begins around February 13 and lasts for 7.5 months, ending around September 30.

The clearest month of the year in Nhlangano is June, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 87% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 30 and lasts for 4.5 months, ending around February 13.

The cloudiest month of the year in Nhlangano is November, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 42% 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 Nhlangano varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.6 months, from October 10 to March 30, with a greater than 27% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Nhlangano is December, with an average of 15.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.4 months, from March 30 to October 10. The month with the fewest wet days in Nhlangano is June, with an average of 1.2 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. The month with the most days of rain alone in Nhlangano is December, with an average of 15.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 50% 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. Nhlangano experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 9.4 months, from August 7 to May 18, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Nhlangano is January, with an average rainfall of 4.3 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 2.6 months, from May 18 to August 7. The month with the least rain in Nhlangano is June, with an average rainfall of 0.3 inches.

The length of the day in Nhlangano varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 26 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 13 hours, 51 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:52 AM on December 1, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 53 minutes later at 6:45 AM on July 3. The earliest sunset is at 5:08 PM on June 8, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 46 minutes later at 6:54 PM on January 12.

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

Nhlangano experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 5.2 months, from November 3 to April 8, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 12% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Nhlangano is February, with 13.7 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Nhlangano is July, with 0.0 days that are muggy or worse.

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 Nhlangano experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.7 months, from July 17 to December 7, with average wind speeds of more than 6.9 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Nhlangano is September, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.0 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.3 months, from December 7 to July 17. The calmest month of the year in Nhlangano is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.7 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the west for 3.8 months, from April 21 to August 16, with a peak percentage of 45% on June 13. The wind is most often from the north for 1.4 months, from August 16 to September 29, with a peak percentage of 33% on September 28. The wind is most often from the east for 6.7 months, from September 29 to April 21, with a peak percentage of 41% on January 1.

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

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 Nhlangano for hot-weather activities is from early January to late March, with a peak score in the last week of February.

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 Nhlangano 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 4.0 months, from November 3 to March 1, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.6 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Nhlangano is January, with an average of 7.3 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.9 months, from May 7 to August 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.5 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Nhlangano is June, with an average of 3.9 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Nhlangano are -27.117 deg latitude, 31.200 deg longitude, and 3,432 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Nhlangano contains significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 607 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 3,443 feet. Within 10 miles contains significant variations in elevation (2,073 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (7,123 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Nhlangano is covered by cropland (47%) and grassland (44%), within 10 miles by cropland (48%) and grassland (46%), and within 50 miles by grassland (46%) and cropland (33%).