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The climate of Nepal
Nepal is a country in Asia, bordering China (Tibet) and India. The
largest part of Nepal is very mountainous and is part of the Himalayan
mountain range. Within the borders of Nepal eight of the ten highest
mountains in the world can be found. Among them is the highest
mountain in the world: Mount Everest with an altitude of 8,848 meters.
Because of the presence of Mount Everest and the Himalayans people
mistakenly assume that Nepal is a cold country with a lot of snow. Low
temperatures and snowy peaks are caused by the extremely high
altitudes. In Nepal, the areas above 4,400 meters have a high mountain
climate; the areas between 3,600 meters and 4,400 meters have a
sub arctic climate; between 2,400 meters and 3,600 meters there is a
cold zone; the areas between 1,200 meters and 2,400 meters are a
moderate zone and below 1,200 meters there is a mix of several
subtropical climates.
Climate information of places and areas in Nepal
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 Nepal the following climate
information is available:
Five seasons
There are no less than five seasons in Nepal: summer, monsoon, autumn,
winter and spring. During the winter the Himalayans prevent cold air
from reaching the south, causing temperatures to be reasonably high
south of the Himalayans. However, in the Himalayans at a medium or
high altitude cold or extreme cold with snowfall is not uncommon
during the winter. In the areas above 4,000 meters a combination of
drifting snow and wind may cause dangerous snowstorms, especially on
the northern side of the mountain range. From June till August it is
summer in the mountains (above 4,400 meters temperatures remain below
or rise just above freezing point). The subtropical southern part of
Nepal has a southwestern monsoon during this period. The combination
of high temperatures (25-40 degrees Celsius) and reasonably high
precipitation figures cause a very muggy feel because humidity figures
are high as well.
Precipitation
The southern part of Nepal, where the subtropical lower areas can be
found get reasonable amounts of precipitation, mainly caused by the
monsoon period. These areas get 1,800 millimeters to locally 3,000
millimeters of annual precipitation. In the Himalayans there are large
differences in precipitation figures, especially on the south side. On
the windward side of the mountain rains may be forced up the mountain
and may cause inconvenience when large amounts of precipitation fall
within a short period of time. When this occurs there is a serious
risk of landslides or floods rushing down the mountain with an
incredible force. In the mountains most precipitation falls in the
form of snow; above 4,000 meters almost all precipitation falls in the
form of snow, hail and ice.
Winter sun
The lower areas of Nepal are quite a good winter sun destination.
During the winter temperatures are relatively mild; just prior to the
monsoon period temperatures are even very pleasant. In March and
April, when the weather in Europe is still unpredictable, the weather
in the southern part of Nepal is spring-like or even summer-like with
temperatures of 22-30 degrees Celsius with a small chance of
precipitation and many hours of sunshine.
Climate figures
Throughout Nepal several climate figures and temperatures can be
recorded. The figures below are for the capital Kathmandu and cannot
be seen as an average for the country. Please, visit the individual
climate pages for climate records on other places in Nepal.
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 figures below can are for the capital
Kathmandu. Please, visit the individual climate pages for climate
records on other places in Nepal.
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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= 0-5 mm ●
= 6-30 mm ●
= 31-60 mm ●
= 61-100 mm ●
= 101-200 mm ●
=
over 200 mm
