Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Mahenge Tanzania

In Mahenge, the wet season is muggy and overcast, the dry season is mostly clear, and it is warm year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 60°F to 88°F and is rarely below 56°F or above 91°F.

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

The hot season lasts for 2.2 months, from September 23 to November 29, with an average daily high temperature above 86°F. The hottest month of the year in Mahenge is November, with an average high of 87°F and low of 67°F.

The cool season lasts for 4.5 months, from March 12 to July 29, with an average daily high temperature below 81°F. The coldest month of the year in Mahenge is July, with an average low of 60°F and high of 80°F.

In Mahenge, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Mahenge begins around April 18 and lasts for 7.3 months, ending around November 27.

The clearest month of the year in Mahenge is August, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 78% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 27 and lasts for 4.7 months, ending around April 18.

The cloudiest month of the year in Mahenge is February, 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 Mahenge varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 4.9 months, from November 27 to April 24, with a greater than 35% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Mahenge is March, with an average of 20.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.1 months, from April 24 to November 27. The month with the fewest wet days in Mahenge is July, with an average of 0.2 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 Mahenge is March, with an average of 20.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 70% on March 28.

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. Mahenge experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 7.2 months, from October 18 to May 23, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Mahenge is March, with an average rainfall of 6.6 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 4.8 months, from May 23 to October 18. The month with the least rain in Mahenge is August, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Mahenge does not vary substantially over the course of the year, staying within 38 minutes of 12 hours throughout. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 11 hours, 37 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 12 hours, 38 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 6:02 AM on November 16, and the latest sunrise is 47 minutes later at 6:49 AM on July 13. The earliest sunset is at 6:20 PM on May 26, and the latest sunset is 41 minutes later at 7:01 PM on January 28.

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

Mahenge experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 5.5 months, from November 23 to May 7, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 22% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Mahenge is March, with 27.3 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Mahenge 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 Mahenge 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 12, with average wind speeds of more than 4.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Mahenge is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.9 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.0 months, from December 12 to August 12. The calmest month of the year in Mahenge is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 2.7 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 2.5 months, from May 7 to July 21, with a peak percentage of 63% on June 19. The wind is most often from the east for 9.5 months, from July 21 to May 7, with a peak percentage of 79% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Mahenge 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 Mahenge for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid May to late September, with a peak score in the second 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 Mahenge for hot-weather activities is from early August to late November, with a peak score in the third 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).

Temperatures in Mahenge 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 some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.3 months, from September 20 to November 29, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.0 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Mahenge is October, with an average of 7.3 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from December 27 to April 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.9 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Mahenge is February, with an average of 5.6 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Mahenge are -8.683 deg latitude, 36.717 deg longitude, and 3,409 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Mahenge contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,640 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 3,355 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (3,802 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (4,849 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Mahenge is covered by cropland (96%), within 10 miles by trees (72%) and cropland (21%), and within 50 miles by trees (49%) and herbaceous vegetation (16%).