Climate averages 1991–2020
Gao weather
in January.
A hot, very dry month: the coolest and the 5th driest of the year.
Long-term climate patterns, not a forecast for a particular trip.
January is a hot month in Gao: daytime highs average 30.0°C and nights cool to about 14.4°C. By daytime temperature it is the coolest month of the year.
Rain is very rare: less than 1 mm falls in a typical January (the 5th driest of the 12 months). Daylight, from sunrise to sunset, lasts about 11 h 16 min on an average January day.
The nearest other city in this atlas is Timbuktu (321 km away). In January its highs average 27.7°C, 2.3°C cooler than Gao, with almost no rain (under 1 mm).
Among the 13 cities listed in Mali, Gao ranks 12th of 13 for the warmest January highs and joint 1st of 13 for the driest January (rainfall, lowest first). The mean January high of those 13 cities is 32.0°C; Gao is 2.0°C cooler than that mean.
From January to February, average highs rise by 3.2°C to 33.3°C, and monthly rainfall stays under 1 mm.
The annual picture
January in context
Monthly rainfall
Average total · mmAverages from hourly ERA5 reanalysis data. Actual weather varies from year to year. How these numbers are calculated
Every month, side by side
Gao climate table
| Month | Average highHigh / low | Average low | Rainfall mm/month | Rain days ≥1 mm/day | Daylight hours/dayDaylight h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January, selected | 30.0°C14.4°C | 14.4°C | 0.3 | 0.1 | 11.311 h |
| February | 33.3°C16.7°C | 16.7°C | 0.1 | 0.0 | 11.612 h |
| March | 37.2°C20.0°C | 20.0°C | 0.1 | 0.0 | 12.012 h |
| April | 40.8°C24.1°C | 24.1°C | 0.6 | 0.2 | 12.512 h |
| May | 42.2°C27.4°C | 27.4°C | 2.3 | 0.8 | 12.913 h |
| June | 41.7°C28.7°C | 28.7°C | 7.6 | 2.8 | 13.113 h |
| July | 39.0°C27.2°C | 27.2°C | 31 | 7.9 | 13.013 h |
| August | 37.0°C26.0°C | 26.0°C | 56 | 11.2 | 12.713 h |
| September | 39.2°C26.7°C | 26.7°C | 16 | 4.3 | 12.212 h |
| October | 39.2°C24.9°C | 24.9°C | 2.6 | 0.8 | 11.812 h |
| November | 35.7°C19.8°C | 19.8°C | 0.1 | 0.0 | 11.411 h |
| December | 31.7°C15.9°C | 15.9°C | 0.1 | 0.0 | 11.211 h |
Rainfall is the average of the 30 separate monthly totals. A rain day is a local calendar day with at least 1 mm of precipitation. Daylight is the calculated sunrise-to-sunset length, not measured sunshine.
Compare places
January in nearby cities
- Timbuktu in JanuaryMali · 321 kmHigh 27.7°C · Low 13.7°C · 0.9 mm rain
- Kaya in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 371 kmHigh 31.5°C · Low 16.4°C · 0.1 mm rain
- Niamey in JanuaryNiger · 384 kmHigh 31.6°C · Low 15.8°C · 0 mm rain
- Ouahigouya in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 393 kmHigh 31.5°C · Low 16.3°C · 0.2 mm rain
- Pouytenga in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 449 kmHigh 32.8°C · Low 17.4°C · 0 mm rain
- Saaba in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 458 kmHigh 32.7°C · Low 17.9°C · 0.3 mm rain
- Ouagadougou in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 463 kmHigh 32.8°C · Low 17.7°C · 0.3 mm rain
- Fada N'gourma in JanuaryBurkina Faso · 470 kmHigh 33.6°C · Low 18.5°C · 0.1 mm rain
Read the numbers correctly
Climate, not a promise.
These patterns help compare months. They cannot tell you the weather on a specific day of your trip.
Sources, method and limitsHow these numbers are made (what the highs, lows and rain days mean, the sources and the model cell used for Gao) is explained once on the Gao year overview and on the Sources, method and limits page.