The Climate of
Réunion
View over the valley of Takamaka
What is the climate of Réunion like?
Réunion is a small island is situated in latitude 21°S in the Indian Ocean. It is an overseas department of France. It lies 190 km (120 mi) west-southwest of Mauritius and about 675 km (420 mi) east of Madagascar. The island is about 55 km (34 mi) wide, and consists of a high volcanic mountain rising to 3,000 meters (10,000 feet).
Réunion features a tropical monsoon climate with two distinct seasons: a hot and humid wet season from December to April and a very warm, drier season for the remaining seven months of the year. The mean annual temperature is 24°C (75°F) at sea level, but the climate, generally tropical, varies with orientation and altitude. Rainfall is very heavy on the south and southeast slopes exposed to the trade winds. The east coast receives almost daily rainfall, totaling some 3,500 mm (140 inches) annually, but on the north coast, annual rainfall is only about half that. The island is occasionally affected by tropical cyclones between December and April.
| Climate data for Saint-Denis (1981−2010) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 30.0 (86.0) | 30.0 (86.0) | 29.8 (85.6) | 29.1 (84.4) | 27.5 (81.5) | 26.1 (79.0) | 25.2 (77.4) | 25.3 (77.5) | 25.9 (78.6) | 26.9 (80.4) | 28.1 (82.6) | 29.1 (84.4) | 27.7 (81.9) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.6 (79.9) | 26.7 (80.1) | 26.4 (79.5) | 25.5 (77.9) | 23.9 (75.0) | 22.4 (72.3) | 21.6 (70.9) | 21.6 (70.9) | 22.1 (71.8) | 23.2 (73.8) | 24.4 (75.9) | 25.7 (78.3) | 24.2 (75.6) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 23.2 (73.8) | 23.5 (74.3) | 23.0 (73.4) | 22.0 (71.6) | 20.3 (68.5) | 18.7 (65.7) | 17.9 (64.2) | 17.8 (64.0) | 18.3 (64.9) | 19.5 (67.1) | 20.7 (69.3) | 22.3 (72.1) | 20.6 (69.1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 278.6 (10.97) | 351.0 (13.82) | 232.5 (9.15) | 154.3 (6.07) | 97.6 (3.84) | 76.9 (3.03) | 57.8 (2.28) | 57.8 (2.28) | 50.0 (1.97) | 43.4 (1.71) | 70.0 (2.76) | 188.7 (7.43) | 1,658.6 (65.30) |
| Source: Meteo France | |||||||||||||
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
Réunion
In summary:
Réunion has a tropical monsoon climate with a rainy season from December to April. The mean annual temperature is 24°C (75°F) at sea level. The south and east coast receives some 3500 mm (140 in) of rain annually, but on the north coast, annual rainfall is about half that. Tropical cyclones threaten from December to April.