The climate in the Federated States of Micronesia

Climate zone: tropics

High humidity and hot temperatures make the weather in the Federated States of Micronesia pleasant at times but also tropical humid. It is warm to hot all year round, inviting bathing at average water temperatures of 27 degrees. The warmest and rainiest part of the country is Yap. The coldest is Chuuk. Due to less rain, the best time for traveling is in February.

Temperature records of the last 74 years

The hottest temperature measured from 1949 to January 2023 was reported by the Yap weather station. In March 2013, the record temperature of 39.6 °C was reported here. The hottest summer from July to September, based on all 2 weather stations in Micronesia , was recorded in 2016 with an average temperature of 28.6 °C. This average temperature will normally be measured every four to six hours, thus also including the nights. Normally, this value is 27.5 degrees Celsius. The average maximum daily temperature at that time was 31.8 °C.

The coldest day in these 74 years was reported by the Yap weather station. Here the temperature dropped to 17.2 °C in November 1999. Yap lies at an altitude of 15 meters above sea level. The coldest winter (January to March) was in 1993 with an average temperature of 26.8 °C. In Micronesia, it is usual to have about 0.7 degrees more at 27.5 °C for this three-month period.

The most precipitation fell in February 2014. With 32.4 mm per day, the Chuuk weather station recorded the highest monthly average of the last 74 years.

Long-term development of temperatures from 1997 - 2022

In contrast to single record values, long-term development cannot simply be brought about by all weather stations in the country. Both the number and the locations are constantly changing. An average value would give a distorted result. If several measuring stations in particularly cold mountain or coastal regions are added in one year, the average would decrease as a result of this alone. If a station fails during the summer or winter months, it does not provide any values and distorts the average again. The subsequent long-term development was therefore reduced to only 2 measuring points in order to have comparable data over as long a period as possible.

In the years 1997 to 2022, there were only these 2 weather stations in the whole country, which reported continuous temperature values (Yap, Chuuk). From these weather reports, we have created a long-term development that shows the monthly average temperatures. The hottest month in this entire period was April 2016 at 29.2 °C. August 1999 was the coldest month with an average temperature of 26.5 °C.

The average annual temperature was about 27.6 °C in the years after 1997 and about 28.2 °C in the last years before 2022. It has therefore increased only slightly by about 0.6 °C over the past 26 years. This trend only applies to the selected 2 weather stations in the Federated States of Micronesia. A considerably more comprehensive evaluation of global warming has been provided separately.

Data basis and methodology

The data from the individual measuring stations are based on the archives of the German Weather Service, individual values averaged and supplemented by own elements. In order to determine a representative national average, average values were first calculated for each part of the country, which were then summarized at the national level.