Datong weather in March

In March, Datong sees average daytime highs of 9°C and overnight lows near -4°C, with 14 mm of precipitation across 3.6 wet days and about 11.7 hours of daylight. It is the 8th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 6°C in the first days to 12°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 46% of the time in March, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 11 hours at the start of March to 12 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Datong's 6th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Datong's year-round climate.

Daytime high
8th warmest
Overnight low
-4°
5th coldest
Precipitation
14 mm
3.6 wet days
Daylight
11 h 42 min
6:46 AM – 6:27 PM
Cloud cover
46%
6th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
4.91 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.1
out of 10

Datong is prefecture-level city in Shanxi, China.

Air quality
Very high
PM2.5 36.6 µg/m³ · 2018
Density
132/km²
people per km²

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 6°C in the first days to 12°C by the end.

A typical March day in Datong reaches about 9°C in the afternoon and slips back to -4°C overnight — a 13°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 15°C. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 7°C warmer than February and about 8°C cooler than April.

-10°10°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
15-7
25-6
36-6
46-6
56-6
66-6
77-6
87-5
97-5
107-5
118-5
128-4
138-4
148-4
159-4
169-4
179-3
189-3
1910-3
2010-3
2110-3
2210-2
2311-2
2411-2
2511-2
2611-2
2712-2
2812-1
2912-1
3013-1
3113-1

How March really feels in Datong

Once humidity and wind are folded in, March averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
31
7 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in March is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Datong weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 8th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-3° / -15°30.91.19.50.0
Feb / -11°51.81.810.40.0
Mar / -4°143.62.111.72.1
Apr17° / 274.70.9136.0
May23° / 3960.114.27.4
Jun27° / 15°599.4014.86.6
Jul28° / 18°9611.8014.65.6
Aug27° / 16°8810.5013.66.5
Sep22° / 10°678.8012.36.9
Oct15° / 325.40.210.95.2
Nov / -5°1331.59.80.9
Dec-1° / -12°30.81.29.20.0

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 46% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 38%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16337
26535
36535
46535
56535
66535
76634
86634
96634
106634
116634
126535
136535
146436
156337
166337
176238
186139
196139
206040
216040
225941
235941
245842
255842
265842
275941
285941
295941
305941
315941

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitationSnow

Datong gets around 14 mm of rain and snow over 3.6 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 12% and peaks near 16% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
188
288
388
497
597
697
797
897
997
10107
11107
12117
13117
14127
15127
16127
17137
18137
19137
20137
21147
22147
23147
24157
25157
26156
27156
28156
29156
30165
31165

Humidity in March

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of March feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, March lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in March

Winds average 11 km/h in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
110calm
210calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
611calm
711calm
811calm
911calm
1011calm
1111calm
1211calm
1311calm
1411calm
1511calm
1611calm
1711calm
1811calm
1911calm
2011calm
2111calm
2211calm
2311calm
2411calm
2511calm
2611calm
2711calm
2811calm
2911calm
3011calm
3111calm

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 hours at the start of March to 12 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 84 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 7:10 AM to 6:21 AM, and sunset from 6:10 PM to 6:42 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.07:106:10
211.07:086:11
311.17:076:12
411.17:056:14
511.27:046:15
611.27:026:16
711.37:016:17
811.36:596:18
911.46:586:19
1011.46:566:20
1111.46:546:21
1211.56:536:22
1311.56:516:23
1411.66:506:25
1511.66:486:26
1611.76:466:27
1711.76:456:28
1811.86:436:29
1911.86:416:30
2011.96:406:31
2111.96:386:32
2211.96:366:33
2312.06:356:34
2412.06:336:35
2512.16:316:36
2612.16:306:37
2712.26:286:38
2812.26:266:39
2912.36:256:40
3012.36:236:41
3112.46:216:42

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 4.91 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.34 kWh/m² to a high of 6.37 kWh/m² in June across the year — March's 4.91 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.3Bright
24.4Bright
34.4Bright
44.5Bright
54.5Bright
64.5Bright
74.6Bright
84.6Bright
94.7Bright
104.7Bright
114.8Bright
124.8Bright
134.8Bright
144.9Bright
154.9Bright
164.9Bright
175.0Bright
185.0Bright
195.0Bright
205.0Bright
215.1Bright
225.1Bright
235.1Bright
245.2Bright
255.2Bright
265.2Bright
275.2Bright
285.3Bright
295.3Bright
305.3Bright
315.3Bright
Planning a trip in March

Hazard calendar for Datong

In seasonPeak

None of Datong's seasonal hazards are active in March. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

Datong sees seasonal dust haze (April–June), heaviest in May.

Dust
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is March a good time to visit Datong?

Our two travel scores rate March for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

2.1
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

March is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Datong.

What to pack for Datong in March

From March's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In March, Datong sees daytime highs around 9°C and nights near -4°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and sun protection. About 4 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatsun protection

UV index in Datong in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Datong peaks around May 23 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowMay 23UV 9Dec 22UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May9Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep7High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Datong in March

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where March falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Datong is worst in March — around 47 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 1.9× the cleanest month (August, 25 µg/m³).

Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Datong's WHO annual average of 36.6 µg/m³.

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorModeratePoorMar 1746 µg/m³Aug 1725 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan40Poor
Feb40Poor
Mar47Poor
Apr41Poor
May36Poor
Jun31Moderate
Jul28Moderate
Aug25Moderate
Sep27Moderate
Oct39Poor
Nov47Poor
Dec38Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Datong?

Datong sits at 40.1°N, 113.3°E, 1,054 m above sea level, in China. The nearest listed city is Beijing, 265 km away.

TianjinChengdeJinanSaynshandZhengzhouLuoyangSongyang

Topography around Datong

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Datong.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Datong has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 58 m around an average of 1,055 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 563 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,552 m.

The land around Datong is covered by artificial surfaces (81%) within 3 km, grassland (41%), artificial surfaces (27%) and cropland (24%) within 16 km, and grassland (53%) and cropland (37%) within 80 km.

3 km
58 m
16 km
563 m
80 km
1,552 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
March weather nearby: Beijing 265 km · Tianjin 349 km · Chengde 406 km · Jinan 499 km · Saynshand 593 km · Zhengzhou 594 km · Luoyang 607 km · Songyang 627 km

China travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / I
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 47% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$13,862
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.5
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
17.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 464
Religion
unaffiliated 52%folk religion 22%Buddhist 18%Christian 5%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Datong (40.0936°, 113.2914°, elevation 1,054 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).