The Climate of
Palau
Palau International Coral Reef Center, Koror
What is the climate of Palau like?
Palau is the westernmost archipelago of the Caroline Island chain in the portion of the North Pacific Ocean. The country lies southeast of the Philippines and north of Indonesia and consists of six island groups totaling more than two hundred islands that are oriented roughly north-to-south.
Located near the equator, Palau has a maritime tropical climate, characterized by very little seasonal or diurnal (day/night) variation. It experiences moderately high temperatures and humidity—the yearly mean temperature is 28°C (82°F). It experiences moderately high temperatures and humidity, which vary little from month to month. The daily range of temperature is quite small—about 4°C/10°F.
There is high rainfall throughout the year and a relatively high humidity of 82%. Heavy rainfall occurs from May to December. The short torrential nature of the rainfall produces up to 3,800 millimeters (150 inches) of rain annually. Although outside of the main typhoon path, damaging storms can occur in the months from June through November.
Palau has moderately large amounts of sunshine, averaging between six and eight hours a day, in spite of a large number of days on which some rain falls. Much of the rainfall is in the form of short, heavy showers, but days with continuous rain are more frequent in the wetter months. Although the combination of temperature and humidity is often rather muggy and oppressive, particularly at night, daytime temperatures are usually moderate and feel more comfortable because of the brisk winds, both daytime sea breezes and the predominant and regular trade winds.
| Climate data for Palau Islands (1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) | 30.6 (87.1) | 30.9 (87.6) | 31.3 (88.3) | 31.4 (88.5) | 31.0 (87.8) | 30.6 (87.1) | 30.7 (87.3) | 30.9 (87.6) | 31.1 (88.0) | 31.4 (88.5) | 31.1 (88.0) | 31.0 (87.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) | 27.2 (81.0) | 27.5 (81.5) | 27.9 (82.2) | 28.0 (82.4) | 27.6 (81.7) | 27.4 (81.3) | 27.5 (81.5) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.9 (82.2) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.6 (81.7) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 23.9 (75.0) | 23.9 (75.0) | 24.1 (75.4) | 24.4 (75.9) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.1 (75.4) | 24.3 (75.7) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.4 (75.9) | 24.4 (75.9) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.2 (75.6) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 271.8 (10.70) | 231.6 (9.12) | 208.3 (8.20) | 220.2 (8.67) | 304.5 (11.99) | 438.7 (17.27) | 458.2 (18.04) | 379.7 (14.95) | 301.2 (11.86) | 352.3 (13.87) | 287.5 (11.32) | 304.3 (11.98) | 3,758.3 (147.97) |
| Source: Hong Kong Observatory | |||||||||||||
References
- E. A. Pearce, Charles Gordon Smith, (1990) The Hutchinson World Weather Guide, John Murray Press. ISBN 1859863426
- Timothy L. Gall, (ed.), (2003), Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations, Eleventh Edition, Thomson Gale
- Hugh Chisholm, (ed.), (1911), Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh edition, Cambridge University Press
The Climate of
Palau
In summary:
Located near the equator, Palau’s climate is maritime tropical, characterized by little seasonal or daily variation. The annual mean temperature is 28°C (82°F).
There is high rainfall throughout the year—up to 3800 mm (150 in) annually, and heavy rainfall occurs from May to December.