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The climate of Brazil
Brazil is the largest country in South America and the fourth largest
country in the world. Brazil is mostly known for its soccer, the
beautiful women and the carnival. Brazil has a complex ecological
system in which the combination of climate and nature yields
spectacular scenery giving the world several unique places. The Amazon
is one of the most fascinating natural areas and is also described as
the earth’s lungs. This is why scientists are very worried about the
deforestation of this tropical rainforest which has a square surface
area of several millions of kilometers. Because the largest part of
Brazil is situated below the equator its seasons are the reverse of
ours. During our summer it is winter in Brazil. However, wintry
weather is uncommon in Brazil. If you want to go on a winter sport
holiday Brazil is not the right place.
Different climate zones
Brazil has several different climate zones which can be classified as
tropic and sub-tropic. Brazil only has warm climate types because of
its location. The type of climate and its corresponding
characteristics are determined by the situation in relation to the
Atlantic Ocean, the highlands of Brazil, the Andes west of Brazil and
the aforementioned Amazon. The entire Amazon area and the northern
part of the highlands of Brazil have tropical climates. South-east of
the mouth of the Amazon River and the entire western Amazon region
have a tropical rainforest climate, type Af According to the
Köppen-Geiger climate classification. The rest of the Amazon has a
tropical monsoon climate (Type Am), because this area has a distinct
wet period, or monsoon. The area between the Amazon and the imaginary
line between Pantanal and
Rio de Janeiro has a tropical savannah
climate (type Aw). The higher areas in central Brazil have a warm,
partially moderate savannah climate (types Cwa and Cwb). The interior
in the east mainly has a warm steppe climate (type Bsh. The coastal
strip between Salvador and Rio de Janeiro has tropical monsoon and
tropical rainforest climates. The southern part of Brazil has a warm
sea climate with warm summers and mild winters (the regions of Paraná,
Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do sul and Soa Paulo). During the winter
temperatures may drop below 10 degrees Celsius here, therefore this
region has no tropical climate.
Climate information of places and areas in Brazil
The climate information on this page is only brief. Specific
information about weather and climate can be found on the climate
pages per area or town. As for Brazil the following climate
information is available:
Rain
No shortage of rain in Brazil. Especially the rainforests of the
Amazon and the eastern tip of Brazil (the surroundings of
Recife) get
a lot of rain. The western and eastern part of the Amazon in
particular may get large amounts of annual rain. The wettest areas get
as much as 2,000-4,000 millimeters of rain per year. These areas get
large amounts of rain evenly spread out over the year. The central
Amazon is drier with 1,500-2,000 millimeters of rain per year. During
the winter (July till September) there is less rainfall than during
the monsoon. This is why this area gets less rain on an annual basis
than other regions. The rest of Brazil gets about 1,000 millimeters of
rain per year; there usually is a wet and a drier season in this
region. However, there are differences between the regions. For more
information on these differences please visit the individual climate
pages on places and regions in Brazil. The Ceará region in the north
east is a little drier than the surrounding regions. However, these
are statistical figures that give exact predictions as to the location
and the quantity of rain. Chances are that a region gets 600
millimeters in one year and a double amount of rain the next year.
Rainy season
Some areas such as the tropical rainforests in the west of the Amazon
and areas at the mouth of the Amazon have no rainy season. These
locations get large amounts of rain all year round. The southern tip
of Brazil is slightly wetter during winter than during summer. A large
contrast can be found in the eastern tip of Brazil; the coastal area
surrounding Recife. Summers are reasonably dry here, winters are very
wet. More than 200 millimeters per month in May and June is not
uncommon. The central part of the Amazon does have a rainy season. The
period from June till September is relatively dry with 30-100
millimeters of rain per month. The swamplands of Pantanal have their
rainy season from December till May. During this period about
1,000-1,400 millimeters of rain falls causing water levels to rise by
3 meters. Large areas get flooded causing them to be very fertile.
This area also is the habitat of many animal and fish species. Several
of them unfortunately are almost extinct through the actions of man.
The area is very popular among nature lovers and people who want to
catch animals to sell them for (sometimes large) amounts of money. The
central part of Brazil, which is elevated, also has a wet season
during the summer. The capital of Brasilia for instance gets 3-5 rainy
days per month during winter. During the summer it rains almost every
day causing precipitation figures to rise to 200 millimeters per
month.
Warmth
Brazil is a warm country. Not only the weather is warm, so are the
people and Brazil’s music. Large parts of Brazil get temperatures
around tropical values of 30-33 degrees Celsius all year round. Night
time temperatures usually are just above 20 degrees Celsius. The
southern part of Brazil is slightly cooler during winter; a pleasant
20-28 degrees Celsius on average during the day. However, night time
temperatures are colder with 5-10 degrees Celsius. In the coastal area
between Rio de Janeiro and Salvador you may add 5-8 degrees. Subzero
temperatures are uncommon in Brazil. Only on the highest summits
subzero temperatures may occur. However, bringing skis is no use,
since there are no large snowy slopes.
UV-Index
UV-Index figures in Brazil are high. The northern part, around or just
below the equator, has the highest possible figure of 11 all year
round. In December and January this may be slightly lower when skies
are clouded. The southern part of Brazil has high UV-index figures
during summer as well causing a white skin to get sunburnt within 15
minutes. The advice is to apply sunscreen with a high protection
factor. During the hottest time of the day (11-4 pm) the best advice
is to stay out of the sun or cover up properly.
Climate figures
The figures below are for the city of Rio de Janeiro. They are an
average for Brazil. However, because the climate of Brazil is so
divers please go to the individual pages for climate information on
other places and regions in Brazil and use them as a reference.
More climate information
Climate tables are useful but they don’t give an overall picture of
the climate and possible weather conditions during a period of time.
How high the chances are of hot or cold weather or hurricanes can
often not be found in these tables. This is why we offer extra climate
information per month. The information below is an average for Rio de
Janeiro.
Please visit the individual pages for climate information on other
places and regions in Brazil and use them as a reference. Especially
in the field of precipitation and UV-index deviations may occur. The
chance of wintry weather in Brazil is nil. Chances of (very) warm
weather are higher in the north and lower in the south and some parts
in the west.
Disclaimer
The information at this site was carefully composed from climate data collected by meteorological services, meteorological offices, climate experts and other sources. “More climate info” is based on statistics, climate data and personal experience. No rights can be derived from this site. Weather has no memory and gives no guaranties. Nothing is as changeable and unpredictable as the weather. The authors of this site feel in no way responsible for any damages caused by misinterpretation or other circumstances that may influence your holiday or trip to a certain destination. We provide information, it’s up to the reader to use it to it’s benefit.
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this site in Dutch
= 0-5 mm ●
= 6-30 mm ●
= 31-60 mm ●
= 61-100 mm ●
= 101-200 mm ●
=
over 200 mm
