Climate of Papua New Guinea

Climate of Papua New Guinea

Where is the country of Papua New Guinea located? The Independent State of Papua New Guinea is a country in the extreme southeast of Asia. Geographically, the country is more often classified as Oceania. Papua New Guinea consists of the eastern part of the island of New Guinea (which it shares with Indonesia), supplemented by a large number of smaller islands. Culturally, it is one of the most diverse countries in the world. More than eight hundred indigenous languages ​​are spoken. Also in the field of religions in Papua New Guinea there is a large variation, with over 95% of the people being categorized within the various Christian faiths. Papua New Guinea has a mainly mountainous landscape and the country consists mainly of tropical rainforest. Papua New Guinea mainly has a tropical rainforest climate (type Af according to the Köppen-Geiger climate system). Locally, there is a tropical monsoon climate (type Am) or a tropical savanna climate (type Aw) because of a different precipitation pattern. Only on the highest mountain peaks in the interior of the island of New Guinea is there a different weather picture. Here, on the highest points, such as Mount Wilhelm, even occasional frost or even snow can occur. There is no destination closer to the equator that can get snow.

Tropical warm

For almost all of Papua New Guinea it is tropical warm all year round. Variations in temperatures are quite rare. Even during the monsoon periods, there is no drop in temperature. With the exception of high altitudes, the maximum temperature is around thirty degrees Celsius in almost all of Papua New Guinea. Minimums range from about 10-13 degrees at an altitude of 2000 meters to about 22 to 24 degrees in the low-lying coastal areas. Extreme heat, in which the mercury rises to above 35 degrees Celsius, is relatively rare.

Natural Disasters

Papua New Guinea is located in an area where nature regularly shows how destructive it can be. Its location along a tectonic fault line makes earthquakes, seaquakes and tsunamis among the possible disasters to hit Papua New Guinea. For tropical storms and even hurricanes, Papua New Guinea is just outside the area where they occur regularly. The chance that a hurricane will hit Papua New Guinea is therefore relatively small, although it cannot be ruled out 100 percent.

Climate figures

The figures below are based on long-term average climate statistics. The temperatures are displayed in degrees Celsius (°C).

Maximum temperature Minimum temperature Hours of sunshine per day Days of rainfall per month Water temperature
January 31℃ 23℃ 6 21 29℃
February 31℃ 23℃ 6 19 29℃
March 31℃ 23℃ 6 20 29℃
April 30℃ 23℃ 6 18 29℃
May 30℃ 24℃ 6 16 28℃
June 29℃ 23℃ 6 13 27℃
July 29℃ 22℃ 6 12 26℃
August 29℃ 22℃ 7 10 25℃
September 30℃ 22℃ 7 12 26℃
October 31℃ 23℃ 7 11 27℃
November 31℃ 23℃ 7 12 28℃
December 31℃ 23℃ 6 16 29℃

Best time to visit Papua New Guinea

Do you want to know when is the best time to travel to Papua New Guinea? You can determine the best time to travel to a destination based on the weather and climate. In addition, there are other factors that are not directly related to the weather and that can influence the best travel periods for a travel destination. Think, for example, of holidays or festive periods, which makes traveling more interesting or not, because daily life comes to a standstill as a result. The Independent State of Papua New Guinea occupies the eastern part of the island of New Guinea. The western half belongs to neighboring Indonesia. The best time to travel for a holiday or tour in Papua New Guinea is from June to September. This is the period in which the southern areas have a dry period, but it is also less wet in the mountains than the rest of the year. For the north of Papua New Guinea it doesn’t matter much when you travel, it is wet all year round, less sunny and tropical warm.

Regen

When talking about the climate of Papua New Guinea, you see that the term equatorial climate is often used in addition to the tropical rainforest climate. This is because the amounts of precipitation measured on the south side of the country are much lower than in the wetter north. In the south there is an average annual rainfall of around 1000 millimeters. In the centrally located mountain areas this is already a lot more: an average of 1500 to 2000 millimeters per year. The tropical rainforest climate ensures that the northern areas can count on three thousand millimeters or more. Papua New Guinea is under the influence of two monsoons. From December to April there is the northwest monsoon and from May to October it is the turn of the southeast monsoon.

Temperatures

Tropical temperatures are associated with a tropical climate. You will experience this in large parts of Papua New Guinea. In the lower areas the maximum temperatures are around thirty degrees all year round. Sometimes it is slightly cooler, other times it is slightly warmer. You will not experience peaks towards forty degrees. Fortunately, because the high relative humidity ensures that the perceived temperature is higher than the actual temperature. This is one of the disadvantages of a tropical climate type. In the mountain areas it is on average a few degrees cooler. It is also more often cloudy, so you are less likely to have the hot sun on your body.

Papua New Guinea