Climate Mozambique
"The temperature on the ground is 39°C," said the pilot. A mistake certainly! An hour's flight from there, in Johannesburg, the temperature was 24°C. As the plane descended onto the asphalt at Maputo Airport, it was immediately clear that this was not a mistake. It is November. It is summer. The air is hot, rather dry; the sky is stormy. Welcome to tropical and subtropical territory, where summer runs from October to April, with the rainy season and winter from May to September. Rather extended in latitude, the Mozambican climate is distinguished at least between the North-Central region where temperatures are rather stable throughout the year, decreasing somewhat from May, especially in the interior areas, and the South where winters are still cooler. The best time of year for a trip to Mozambique? It seems to be from mid-May to October.
The climatic zones
Three climatic zones characterize the country and condition its vegetation: a zone of frequent rains from the north to the centre, a cool and rainy zone on the high plateaus in the interior of the country and a dry zone in the south. In other words, north of the Zambezi, there is a monsoon regime, while in the south the climate is drier and depends on the high pressure of the subtropical anticyclone.
Specifically, Mozambique is dominated by a hot and humid season from October to March with average temperatures of 26 °C to 29 °C, and a dry and cool season from April to September with average temperatures of 18 °C to 24 °C in Maputo in June and July. The water temperature follows the same curve. It is therefore better to swim in January if you dream of the warm waters of the tropics, but it remains very pleasant in winter.
Thenorth of Mozambique records a stable temperature throughout the year with an annual average of 25°C and average rainfall of 800 mm per year with a maximum at Namuli-Niassa (2,000 mm). This mountainous area is the wettest, south-east of Lake Niassa and towards the Chiperone and Namuli mountains where rainfall is high. Temperatures decrease during the winter, from May to August, when cool winds can blow in from the south. Temperatures then average 18°C, sometimes lower depending on the region. The province of Tete, between Zumbo and Muturara, along the Zambezi River valley, is one of the most arid and hottest regions in the country, with only 600 mm of rain per year and high temperatures. At this level we are on the Tropic of Capricorn
Gorongosa Park is located in the province of Sofala. These are hectares of savannah and grassland, populated by antelopes, but also lakes and swamps, whose level increases during the rainy season. Mount Gorongosa waters the plain. For good reason, the park may even be closed during the high points of the rainy season. These periods of occasional flooding provide an opportunity for the land to diversify its ecosystem
In the south-central part of the park, temperatures drop sharply from May to August and become very pleasant during the day. Average temperatures of 24°C are recorded on the coast, but sometimes cooler in the evenings on the coast, and sometimes even colder in the inland areas. It is therefore necessary to bring a little wool. At Inhambane and Xai-Xai, clouds often weep during the rainy season with rainfall above 1400 mm and an average annual temperature of 26 °C. Inland, for identical temperatures, rainfall does not reach 300 mm per year. The floods of February 2000 devastated areas where it had not rained for years. The rainiest region remains the central part of the coast, around Quelimane and Beira with the north-western inland areas. The driest region is between Chicualacuala and Massingir
In the south of the country, on the east coast, Maputo is in the southernmost part of the coast. Here, the sun shines almost all year round. The average temperature varies between 19 °C in winter, around July, which can drop as low as 10 °C in the evening, and 26 °C in summer, or rather around 30 °C. The wettest and hottest months are January and February
The whale season starts as early as July. It even happens to see the first arrivals earlier in the year. From July to September, the Mozambique Channel becomes the refuge for mammals that come here to reproduce before returning to colder seas.
The rainy season
From October to March, the season is characterized by short, heavy rains throughout the country, with a very marked increase in rainfall during the hottest periods. On the coast, the oceanic influence unifies the coastal climate with average temperatures of 24 °C and rainfall of 800 mm to 1,400 mm. In other words, it is hot and it rains a lot. In the north, the influence of oceanic air masses leads, between January and February, to cyclones that generally form over Madagascar or in the Mozambique Channel, with winds of up to 100 km/hour. The wind rises, the sky quickly becomes overcast; the birds become quiet, the rain floods and then calms down. Usually, the sun reappears very quickly. These are mostly very strong storms causing material damage in villages with dilapidated buildings. At the same time, in the south, when warm air masses meet cold air masses, hail falls. Unstable tropical air masses bring strong winds and thick cloud formations during this season. In January 2015, both Mozambique and Malawi were affected by severe flooding caused by heavy rains. Extensive damage devastated the border area between the two countries. More than 192 people were killed, dozens were missing and more than 100,000 people were left homeless. The January 2017 cyclone hit the Inhambane region, but the most devastating winds blew over northern Mozambique in March and April 2019. Cyclone Idai first hit the city of Beira before rushing into Zimbabwe, leaving one city completely under water, homeless and hundreds of people dead. The lull is short-lived. At the end of April, a second cyclone, Kenneth, hits the North and the Pemba region. It carries away the roofs of Ibo Island as it passes.
The dry season
From April to September, all of southern Africa is dominated by subtropical anticyclones with stable air masses. The weather forecast then announces continuous good weather: blue sky, dry air, cool winds with morning fog formation on the heights. Mozambique is a good example of this. The north, closer to the equator, remains a bit warmer. Average annual temperature values decrease from north to south and from east to west. Beware, the mosquitoes like it. At the same time, they will devour you. In some inland regions, especially in the south, there is no rain for months.
