Port-aux-Français weather in May

In May, Port-aux-Français sees average daytime highs of 5°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 79 mm of precipitation across 14.6 wet days and about 8.9 hours of daylight. It is the 7th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 6°C in the first days to 5°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 42 min at the start of May to 8 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Port-aux-Français's 3rd-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Port-aux-Français's year-round climate.

Daytime high
7th warmest
Overnight low
6th coldest
Precipitation
79 mm
14.6 wet days
Daylight
8 h 54 min
7:48 AM – 4:42 PM
Cloud cover
73%
3rd clearest
Wind
26 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
1.18 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.2
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.

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 6°C in the first days to 5°C by the end.

A typical May day in Port-aux-Français reaches about 5°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 4°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 2°C and 9°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 2°C cooler than April and about 1°C warmer than June.

-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
162
262
362
462
562
662
762
862
962
1061
1161
1261
1351
1451
1551
1651
1751
1851
1951
2051
2151
2251
2351
2451
2551
2651
2751
2851
2951
3051
3151

How May really feels in Port-aux-Français

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May 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
wind chill below the day's low

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

Port-aux-Français weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 7th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 6813.50.615.61.8
Feb10° / 5811.60.214.21.9
Mar / 7113.10.512.51.6
Apr / 7613.31.510.61.0
May / 7914.63.68.90.2
Jun / 7714.45.580.0
Jul / -1°8815.97.58.40.0
Aug / -1°7814.16.49.80.0
Sep / -1°7814.57.211.60.0
Oct / 6914.34.513.50.1
Nov / 7215.52.815.10.6
Dec / 7715.60.8161.2

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 69%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12674
22674
32773
42872
52872
62872
72872
82872
92971
102971
112971
123070
133070
143169
153169
163070
173169
183169
193268
203268
213268
223268
233268
243268
253268
263367
273466
283466
293367
303367
313367

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Port-aux-Français gets around 79 mm of rain and snow over 14.6 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 47% and peaks near 49% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1478
2478
3478
4478
5479
6479
7479
8479
94610
104610
114611
124611
134611
144612
154612
164612
174612
184613
194613
204613
214613
224713
234714
244714
254814
264815
274815
284815
294916
304916
314916

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May 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 May

Winds average 26 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 25 km/h on the calmest days to 26 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0102030151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
125breezy
225breezy
325breezy
425breezy
525breezy
625breezy
725breezy
825breezy
926breezy
1026breezy
1126breezy
1226breezy
1326breezy
1426breezy
1526breezy
1626breezy
1726breezy
1826breezy
1925breezy
2025breezy
2125breezy
2225breezy
2325breezy
2425breezy
2525breezy
2625breezy
2725breezy
2825breezy
2925breezy
3025breezy
3125breezy

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 42 min at the start of May to 8 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 84 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 7:26 AM to 8:07 AM, and sunset from 5:06 PM to 4:26 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.77:265:06
29.67:285:04
39.67:295:03
49.57:315:01
59.47:324:59
69.47:344:58
79.37:354:56
89.37:374:54
99.27:384:53
109.27:404:51
119.17:414:50
129.17:434:48
139.07:444:47
149.07:464:45
158.97:474:44
168.97:484:42
178.97:504:41
188.87:514:40
198.87:524:38
208.77:544:37
218.77:554:36
228.67:564:35
238.67:584:34
248.67:594:33
258.58:004:32
268.58:014:31
278.58:034:30
288.48:044:29
298.48:054:28
308.38:064:27
318.38:074:26

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 1.18 kWh/m².

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 — May's 1.18 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.5Dim
21.5Dim
31.4Dim
41.4Dim
51.4Dim
61.4Dim
71.4Dim
81.3Dim
91.3Dim
101.3Dim
111.3Dim
121.3Dim
131.2Dim
141.2Dim
151.2Dim
161.2Dim
171.2Dim
181.1Dim
191.1Dim
201.1Dim
211.1Dim
221.1Dim
231.1Dim
241.0Dim
251.0Dim
261.0Dim
271.0Dim
281.0Dim
291.0Dim
300.9Dim
310.9Dim
Planning a trip in May

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

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

0.2
Sightseeing
7th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

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

What to pack for Port-aux-Français in May

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

In May, Port-aux-Français sees daytime highs around 5°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. Worth having: a heavy coat and a windbreaker. About 15 days see rain.

a warm layerrain geara heavy coata windbreaker

Sea temperature near Port-aux-Français in May

The nearest coast averages about 5°C in May — 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.

2°4°6°8°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracing
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan6Bracing
Feb6Bracing
Mar7Bracing
Apr6Bracing
May5Bracing
Jun4Bracing
Jul3Bracing
Aug3Bracing
Sep3Bracing
Oct3Bracing
Nov4Bracing
Dec5Bracing

UV index in Port-aux-Français in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 1. 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highModerateLowModerateVery highJan 19UV 9Jun 23UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan9Very high
Feb8Very high
Mar5Moderate
Apr2Moderate
May1Low
Jun1Low
Jul1Low
Aug2Low
Sep3Moderate
Oct5Moderate
Nov7Very high
Dec8Very 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
16 km
854 m
80 km
1,652 m
grasslandbare terrainsnow and icewaterwetland
May 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).