Climate and average weather in Katwa

In Katwa, the weather is warm, wet, and mostly cloudy and remarkably steady, with daytime highs holding near warm levels all year. The wettest stretch peaks around October.

Best: mid December to early March

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Katwa typically varies from 14°C to 24°C, and is rarely below 13°C or above 27°C. February is the hottest month of the year, while July is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Katwa for warm-weather activities are from late May to late July and mid December to early March.

Hottest
Feb
24°
Coldest
Jul
14°
Wettest
Oct
639 mm
Driest
Jan
210 mm
Rain / yr
4868 mm
255 wet days
Daylight
12.0–12.0 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
1,750 m
0.1°N
Clearest
Jul
72% cloud

Katwa is Commune of Butembo, DR Congo.

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

Katwa weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around mid December to early March.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Katwa, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

Temperatures in Katwa stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is February, with an average high of 24°C and low of 14°C; the coolest is July, with an average low of 14°C and high of 22°C.

Days typically run about 9°C warmer than nights year-round.

10°15°20°25°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan2414
Feb2414
Mar2415
Apr2315
May2315
Jun2314
Jul2214
Aug2314
Sep2314
Oct2314
Nov2314
Dec2314

Average hourly temperature in Katwa

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on February afternoons, near 24°C, and coldest before dawn in July, near 14°C.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Katwa weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan24° / 14°21015.3125.8
Feb24° / 14°23614.3125.7
Mar24° / 15°51623.4124.6
Apr23° / 15°54224124.3
May23° / 15°34422.8124.7
Jun23° / 14°26618.2125.2
Jul22° / 14°28319.1125.2
Aug23° / 14°37922.7124.6
Sep23° / 14°51023.1124.5
Oct23° / 14°63925.9124.1
Nov23° / 14°59525.2124.1
Dec23° / 14°34821.1124.8

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Katwa gets about 4868 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is very wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 4.6 months, from around Jul 28 to Dec 14, peaking in November at about 86% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Feb 4.

October is the wettest month by volume, with 639 mm over about 26 wet days; January is the driest, with 210 mm.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwettermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetNov 7 · 86%Feb 4 · 46%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan4915
Feb5314
Mar7423
Apr8124
May7323
Jun6118
Jul6219
Aug7423
Sep7723
Oct8326
Nov8425
Dec6821

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Katwa collects about 4868 mm of rain across 255 wet days — roughly 406 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. October is the wettest month with 639 mm, while January is the driest at just 210 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 36% of the year’s total.

050100150200250300350400450500550600650700750JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec210236516542344266283379510639595348
Rainfall (mm)Rain days
Jan21015
Feb23614
Mar51623
Apr54224
May34423
Jun26618
Jul28319
Aug37923
Sep51023
Oct63926
Nov59525
Dec34821

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Katwa, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows moderate seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around May 14 and lasts for 3.9 months, ending around September 9. The clearest month is July, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 27% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 10 and lasts for 3.3 months, ending around December 19. The cloudiest month is October, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 95% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJul 12 · 31%Oct 16 · 4%mostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastcloudierclearercloudier
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan1783
Feb1684
Mar1288
Apr793
May1783
Jun2575
Jul2773
Aug2080
Sep1387
Oct595
Nov694
Dec1387

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. Close to the equator, Katwa barely changes through the year: days stay near 12 hours of light in every season.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan12.06:126:12
Feb12.06:176:17
Mar12.06:126:12
Apr12.06:036:03
May12.05:595:59
Jun12.06:036:03
Jul12.06:086:09
Aug12.06:076:07
Sep12.05:575:57
Oct12.05:485:48
Nov12.05:485:48
Dec12.05:595:59

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Katwa averages about 2 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 0 and 4 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 3.7 months, from around May 12 to Sep 2. The sunniest month is June, with roughly 3 sunny days (gloomy).

The greyest month is October, down near 0 sunny days — about 96% fewer than the June peak.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecgreyersunniergreyergloomymixedJun 34 daysOct 140 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan1Gloomy
Feb2Gloomy
Mar1Gloomy
Apr1Gloomy
May2Gloomy
Jun3Gloomy
Jul3Gloomy
Aug3Gloomy
Sep1Gloomy
Oct0Gloomy
Nov0Gloomy
Dec1Gloomy

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

In Katwa, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.

The more humid part of the year lasts 3.3 months, from around March 13 to June 21. The muggiest month is May, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 65% of the time.

The most comfortable stretch runs from around November 17 to March 12, and January is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 94% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJan 18 · 95%May 4 · 24%humidcomfortabledrycomfortablehumidcomfortable
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
Jan28666
Feb296012
Mar55936
Apr03466
May13565
Jun46036
Jul97220
Aug36928
Sep16633
Oct06238
Nov06832
Dec98011

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Wind in Katwa is steady company: average speeds sit near 4 km/hcalm — in every month of the year, with no meaningful windy or calm season.

0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccalmJan 25 · 5 km/hJul 30 · 4 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan5calm
Feb5calm
Mar5calm
Apr5calm
May5calm
Jun4calm
Jul4calm
Aug4calm
Sep4calm
Oct4calm
Nov4calm
Dec4calm

Best time to visit Katwa

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Katwa throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around late December, Katwa is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Katwa for general outdoor tourist activities run from late May to late July and again from mid December to mid March, with a peak score in the first week of February.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationFeb 2 · 6.0

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan5.8good
Feb5.6good
Mar4.7fair
Apr4.3fair
May4.7fair
Jun5.2fair
Jul5.2fair
Aug4.6fair
Sep4.4fair
Oct4.1fair
Nov4.1fair
Dec4.9fair

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Katwa for hot-weather activities is from late December to early March, with a peak score in the first week of February.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationFeb 5 · 5.2

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Katwa, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

Katwa packs about the same all year — highs hold near 24°C. Across the year the things worth having are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In February, Katwa sees daytime highs around 24°C and nights near 14°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 14 days see rain.

UV index (midday) in Katwa by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Katwa peaks around March 16 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near July 12 at about 10 (extreme).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeMar 16UV 16Jul 12UV 10
UV index (midday)Level
Jan10Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar16Extreme
Apr15Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun10Extreme
Jul10Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep14Extreme
Oct14Extreme
Nov12Extreme
Dec11Extreme

Average hourly UV index in Katwa

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in March the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8.5 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 7 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan7.55.5
Feb8.56.5
Mar8.57
Apr8.56.5
May86
Jun7.55.5
Jul7.55
Aug7.55.5
Sep86.5
Oct86.5
Nov86
Dec7.55.5

Air quality in Katwa by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Katwa is worst in February — around 52 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.2× the cleanest month (October, 24 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorModeratePoorModerateFeb 1151 µg/m³Oct 1824 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan48Poor
Feb52Poor
Mar35Moderate
Apr27Moderate
May28Moderate
Jun34Moderate
Jul43Poor
Aug32Moderate
Sep26Moderate
Oct24Moderate
Nov25Moderate
Dec36Poor
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayFrost-free year round

Katwa is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecfrost-free year round
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Katwa banks about 3,171 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around March.

01,0002,0003,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan271
Feb261
Mar290
Apr279
May283
Jun252
Jul250
Aug257
Sep256
Oct264
Nov252
Dec257

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Katwa receives about 5.3 kWh/m² a day of solar energy — bright — and it stays remarkably steady, holding between 4.9 and 5.8 kWh/m² all year. For solar panels, output here is a flat line, not a seasonal wave.

01234567JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmoderatebrightintenseFeb 75.8 kWhJun 184.9 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan5.6Bright
Feb5.8Bright
Mar5.5Bright
Apr5.3Bright
May5.1Bright
Jun4.9Bright
Jul5.1Bright
Aug5.1Bright
Sep5.3Bright
Oct5.1Bright
Nov5.1Bright
Dec5.3Bright

Where is Katwa?

Katwa sits at 0.1°N, 29.3°E, 1,750 m above sea level, in Democratic Republic of the Congo. The nearest listed city is Butembo, 6.0 km away.

Topography around Katwa

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Katwa has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 293 m around an average of 1,785 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,334 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,292 m.

The land around Katwa is covered by artificial surfaces (57%) and trees (29%) within 3 km, trees (58%) within 16 km, and trees (68%) within 80 km.

3 km
293 m
16 km
1,334 m
80 km
4,292 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Nearby: Butembo 6.0 km · Lubero 29 km · Mpondwe 47 km · Beni 48 km · Mangina 57 km · Kisinga 62 km · Hyosha 72 km · Kayna 79 km

Democratic Republic of the Congo travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type C / E
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 42% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$807
2025
Happiness
3.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
12%
of population, 2024
Road deaths
34.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 400

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 Katwa (0.0893°, 29.3086°, elevation 1,750 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).