Port-aux-Français weather in December

In December, Port-aux-Français sees average daytime highs of 8°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 77 mm of precipitation across 15.6 wet days and about 16 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 8°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 4% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 15 h 42 min at the start of December to 16 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Port-aux-Français's 11th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Port-aux-Français's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 8°; 4th warmest
Overnight low: 3°; 9th coldest
Precipitation: 77 mm; 15.6 wet days
Daylight: 16 hours; 4:15 AM – 8:16 PM
Cloud cover: 79%; 11th clearest
Wind: 26 km/h; 6th windiest
Solar energy: 5.89 kWh/m²
Travel score: 1.2; out of 10

Port-aux-Français is research station in Kerguelen, French Southern and Antarctic Territories.

Founded: 1951

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

← November Port-aux-Français year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 8°C through the month.

A typical December day in Port-aux-Français reaches about 8°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 6°C and 11°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 2°C warmer than November and about 1°C cooler than January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	9
Avg low (°C)	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	4	4

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	8	2
2	8	3
3	8	3
4	8	3
5	8	3
6	8	3
7	8	3
8	8	3
9	8	3
10	8	3
11	8	3
12	8	3
13	8	3
14	8	3
15	8	3
16	8	3
17	8	3
18	8	3
19	8	3
20	8	3
21	9	3
22	9	3
23	9	3
24	9	3
25	9	3
26	9	3
27	9	3
28	9	3
29	9	3
30	9	4
31	9	4

How December really feels in Port-aux-Français

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December 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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

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

Port-aux-Français weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 4th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	9° / 4°	68	13.5	0.6	15.6	1.8
Feb	10° / 4°	58	11.6	0.2	14.2	1.9
Mar	9° / 4°	71	13.1	0.5	12.5	1.6
Apr	7° / 3°	76	13.3	1.5	10.6	1.0
May	5° / 1°	79	14.6	3.6	8.9	0.2
Jun	4° / 0°	77	14.4	5.5	8	0.0
Jul	4° / -1°	88	15.9	7.5	8.4	0.0
Aug	4° / -1°	78	14.1	6.4	9.8	0.0
Sep	4° / -1°	78	14.5	7.2	11.6	0.0
Oct	5° / 0°	69	14.3	4.5	13.5	0.1
Nov	7° / 2°	72	15.5	2.8	15.1	0.6
Dec	8° / 3°	77	15.6	0.8	16	1.2

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 4% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 79%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	22	22	22	22	23	23	23	24	24	24	24	24	23	22	22	21	20	20	19	19	19	19	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18
Cloudier (%)	78	78	78	78	77	77	77	76	76	76	76	76	77	78	78	79	80	80	81	81	81	81	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82	82

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	22	78
2	22	78
3	22	78
4	22	78
5	23	77
6	23	77
7	23	77
8	24	76
9	24	76
10	24	76
11	24	76
12	24	76
13	23	77
14	22	78
15	22	78
16	21	79
17	20	80
18	20	80
19	19	81
20	19	81
21	19	81
22	19	81
23	18	82
24	18	82
25	18	82
26	18	82
27	18	82
28	18	82
29	18	82
30	18	82
31	18	82

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Port-aux-Français gets around 77 mm of rain and snow over 15.6 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 50% and peaks near 51% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	48	48	48	48	48	48	49	49	49	49	50	50	50	50	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	51	50	50
Snow chance (%)	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	48	4
2	48	4
3	48	4
4	48	3
5	48	3
6	48	3
7	49	3
8	49	3
9	49	2
10	49	2
11	50	2
12	50	2
13	50	2
14	50	2
15	51	2
16	51	2
17	51	2
18	51	2
19	51	2
20	51	2
21	51	2
22	51	2
23	51	3
24	51	3
25	51	3
26	51	3
27	51	3
28	51	3
29	51	3
30	50	3
31	50	3

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

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

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 26 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 26 km/h on the calmest days to 27 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	27	27	27	27	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26	26
Feels	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy	breezy

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	27	breezy
2	27	breezy
3	27	breezy
4	27	breezy
5	26	breezy
6	26	breezy
7	26	breezy
8	26	breezy
9	26	breezy
10	26	breezy
11	26	breezy
12	26	breezy
13	26	breezy
14	26	breezy
15	26	breezy
16	26	breezy
17	26	breezy
18	26	breezy
19	26	breezy
20	26	breezy
21	26	breezy
22	26	breezy
23	26	breezy
24	26	breezy
25	26	breezy
26	26	breezy
27	26	breezy
28	26	breezy
29	26	breezy
30	26	breezy
31	26	breezy

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 15 h 42 min at the start of December to 16 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 18 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 4:17 AM to 4:23 AM, and sunset from 8:01 PM to 8:22 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	15.7	15.8	15.8	15.8	15.8	15.9	15.9	15.9	15.9	15.9	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0	16.0
Sunrise (AM)	4:17	4:17	4:16	4:16	4:15	4:15	4:15	4:15	4:15	4:14	4:14	4:14	4:14	4:14	4:15	4:15	4:15	4:15	4:16	4:16	4:16	4:17	4:17	4:18	4:18	4:19	4:20	4:20	4:21	4:22	4:23
Sunset (PM)	8:01	8:02	8:03	8:04	8:05	8:07	8:08	8:09	8:10	8:11	8:12	8:13	8:13	8:14	8:15	8:16	8:17	8:17	8:18	8:18	8:19	8:19	8:20	8:20	8:21	8:21	8:21	8:21	8:22	8:22	8:22

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	15.7	4:17	8:01
2	15.8	4:17	8:02
3	15.8	4:16	8:03
4	15.8	4:16	8:04
5	15.8	4:15	8:05
6	15.9	4:15	8:07
7	15.9	4:15	8:08
8	15.9	4:15	8:09
9	15.9	4:15	8:10
10	15.9	4:14	8:11
11	16.0	4:14	8:12
12	16.0	4:14	8:13
13	16.0	4:14	8:13
14	16.0	4:14	8:14
15	16.0	4:15	8:15
16	16.0	4:15	8:16
17	16.0	4:15	8:17
18	16.0	4:15	8:17
19	16.0	4:16	8:18
20	16.0	4:16	8:18
21	16.0	4:16	8:19
22	16.0	4:17	8:19
23	16.0	4:17	8:20
24	16.0	4:18	8:20
25	16.0	4:18	8:21
26	16.0	4:19	8:21
27	16.0	4:20	8:21
28	16.0	4:20	8:21
29	16.0	4:21	8:22
30	16.0	4:22	8:22
31	16.0	4:23	8:22

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 5.89 kWh/m² — the sunniest month for solar.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.85 kWh/m² to a high of 5.89 kWh/m² in December across the year — December's 5.89 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.9	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.8
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	5.8	Bright
2	5.8	Bright
3	5.8	Bright
4	5.9	Bright
5	5.9	Bright
6	5.9	Bright
7	5.9	Bright
8	5.9	Bright
9	5.9	Bright
10	5.9	Bright
11	5.9	Bright
12	5.9	Bright
13	5.9	Bright
14	5.9	Bright
15	5.9	Bright
16	5.9	Bright
17	5.9	Bright
18	5.9	Bright
19	5.8	Bright
20	5.8	Bright
21	5.8	Bright
22	5.8	Bright
23	5.8	Bright
24	5.8	Bright
25	5.8	Bright
26	5.8	Bright
27	5.8	Bright
28	5.8	Bright
29	5.8	Bright
30	5.8	Bright
31	5.8	Bright

Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Port-aux-Français?

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

1.2

Sightseeing

4th-best month of the year

—

Beach & pool

never really warm enough

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Port-aux-Français.

What to pack for Port-aux-Français in December

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

In December, Port-aux-Français sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection and a windbreaker. About 16 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gearsun protectiona windbreaker

Sea temperature near Port-aux-Français in December

The nearest coast averages about 5°C in December — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in March at about 7°C and coldest in September near 3°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°C)	6	6	7	6	5	4	3	3	3	3	4	5
Comfort	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing

	Sea temperature (°C)	Comfort
Jan	6	Bracing
Feb	6	Bracing
Mar	7	Bracing
Apr	6	Bracing
May	5	Bracing
Jun	4	Bracing
Jul	3	Bracing
Aug	3	Bracing
Sep	3	Bracing
Oct	3	Bracing
Nov	4	Bracing
Dec	5	Bracing

UV index in Port-aux-Français in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 8 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Port-aux-Français peaks around January 19 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	9	8	5	2	1	1	1	2	3	5	7	8
Level	Very high	Very high	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Low	Low	Low	Moderate	Moderate	Very high	Very high

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	9	Very high
Feb	8	Very high
Mar	5	Moderate
Apr	2	Moderate
May	1	Low
Jun	1	Low
Jul	1	Low
Aug	2	Low
Sep	3	Moderate
Oct	5	Moderate
Nov	7	Very high
Dec	8	Very high

Location & terrain

Where is Port-aux-Français?

Port-aux-Français sits at 49.3°S, 70.2°E, 11 m above sea level, in French Southern Territories. The nearest listed city is Saint-Joseph, 3,367 km away.

Topography around Port-aux-Français

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Port-aux-Français.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Port-aux-Français has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 68 m around an average of 20 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 854 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,652 m.

The land around Port-aux-Français is covered by grassland (42%), water (36%) and bare terrain (20%) within 3 km, water (41%) and grassland (37%) within 16 km, and water (69%) within 80 km.

3 km

68 m

grassland 42%

16 km

854 m

water 41%

80 km

1,652 m

water 69%

grasslandbare terrainsnow and icewaterwetland

← November Port-aux-Français year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Saint-Joseph 3,367 km · Tôlanaro 3,369 km · Saint-Pierre 3,376 km · Le Tampon 3,381 km · Saint-Louis 3,383 km · Piton Saint-Leu 3,394 km · Souillac 3,398 km · Saint-Benoît 3,399 km

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Port-aux-Français (-49.3492°, 70.2194°, elevation 11 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	8	2
2	8	3
3	8	3
4	8	3
5	8	3
6	8	3
7	8	3
8	8	3
9	8	3
10	8	3
11	8	3
12	8	3
13	8	3
14	8	3
15	8	3
16	8	3
17	8	3
18	8	3
19	8	3
20	8	3
21	9	3
22	9	3
23	9	3
24	9	3
25	9	3
26	9	3
27	9	3
28	9	3
29	9	3
30	9	4
31	9	4

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	22	78
2	22	78
3	22	78
4	22	78
5	23	77
6	23	77
7	23	77
8	24	76
9	24	76
10	24	76
11	24	76
12	24	76
13	23	77
14	22	78
15	22	78
16	21	79
17	20	80
18	20	80
19	19	81
20	19	81
21	19	81
22	19	81
23	18	82
24	18	82
25	18	82
26	18	82
27	18	82
28	18	82
29	18	82
30	18	82
31	18	82

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	48	4
2	48	4
3	48	4
4	48	3
5	48	3
6	48	3
7	49	3
8	49	3
9	49	2
10	49	2
11	50	2
12	50	2
13	50	2
14	50	2
15	51	2
16	51	2
17	51	2
18	51	2
19	51	2
20	51	2
21	51	2
22	51	2
23	51	3
24	51	3
25	51	3
26	51	3
27	51	3
28	51	3
29	51	3
30	50	3
31	50	3

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	8	2
2	8	3
3	8	3
4	8	3
5	8	3
6	8	3
7	8	3
8	8	3
9	8	3
10	8	3
11	8	3
12	8	3
13	8	3
14	8	3
15	8	3
16	8	3
17	8	3
18	8	3
19	8	3
20	8	3
21	9	3
22	9	3
23	9	3
24	9	3
25	9	3
26	9	3
27	9	3
28	9	3
29	9	3
30	9	4
31	9	4

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	22	78
2	22	78
3	22	78
4	22	78
5	23	77
6	23	77
7	23	77
8	24	76
9	24	76
10	24	76
11	24	76
12	24	76
13	23	77
14	22	78
15	22	78
16	21	79
17	20	80
18	20	80
19	19	81
20	19	81
21	19	81
22	19	81
23	18	82
24	18	82
25	18	82
26	18	82
27	18	82
28	18	82
29	18	82
30	18	82
31	18	82

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	48	4
2	48	4
3	48	4
4	48	3
5	48	3
6	48	3
7	49	3
8	49	3
9	49	2
10	49	2
11	50	2
12	50	2
13	50	2
14	50	2
15	51	2
16	51	2
17	51	2
18	51	2
19	51	2
20	51	2
21	51	2
22	51	2
23	51	3
24	51	3
25	51	3
26	51	3
27	51	3
28	51	3
29	51	3
30	50	3
31	50	3

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	8	2
2	8	3
3	8	3
4	8	3
5	8	3
6	8	3
7	8	3
8	8	3
9	8	3
10	8	3
11	8	3
12	8	3
13	8	3
14	8	3
15	8	3
16	8	3
17	8	3
18	8	3
19	8	3
20	8	3
21	9	3
22	9	3
23	9	3
24	9	3
25	9	3
26	9	3
27	9	3
28	9	3
29	9	3
30	9	4
31	9	4

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	22	78
2	22	78
3	22	78
4	22	78
5	23	77
6	23	77
7	23	77
8	24	76
9	24	76
10	24	76
11	24	76
12	24	76
13	23	77
14	22	78
15	22	78
16	21	79
17	20	80
18	20	80
19	19	81
20	19	81
21	19	81
22	19	81
23	18	82
24	18	82
25	18	82
26	18	82
27	18	82
28	18	82
29	18	82
30	18	82
31	18	82

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	48	4
2	48	4
3	48	4
4	48	3
5	48	3
6	48	3
7	49	3
8	49	3
9	49	2
10	49	2
11	50	2
12	50	2
13	50	2
14	50	2
15	51	2
16	51	2
17	51	2
18	51	2
19	51	2
20	51	2
21	51	2
22	51	2
23	51	3
24	51	3
25	51	3
26	51	3
27	51	3
28	51	3
29	51	3
30	50	3
31	50	3

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100