Al-'Alam in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Al-'Alam sees average daytime highs around 16°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 103 mm of rain over about 18 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 16°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 54% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Al-'Alam's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Al-'Alam's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 16°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 7°C
- Rainfall
- 103 mm
- 18 wet days
- Avg wind
- 10 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.9
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Al-'Alam in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 16°C.
A typical winter day in Al-'Alam reaches about 16°C and drops to 7°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Al-'Alam
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.
Al-'Alam weather by month
How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15° / 6° | 38 | 6.6 | 9.9 | 5.1 |
| Feb | 17° / 7° | 32 | 5.3 | 10.7 | 6.5 |
| Mar | 23° / 11° | 33 | 4.8 | 11.7 | 7.9 |
| Apr | 29° / 16° | 21 | 3.7 | 12.8 | 6.6 |
| May | 36° / 22° | 5 | 1.3 | 13.8 | 2.7 |
| Jun | 41° / 27° | 0 | 0 | 14.3 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 44° / 30° | 0 | 0 | 14.1 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 44° / 29° | 0 | 0 | 13.3 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 40° / 25° | 0 | 0.1 | 12.2 | 0.6 |
| Oct | 33° / 20° | 12 | 1.6 | 11.1 | 4.7 |
| Nov | 23° / 12° | 26 | 4 | 10.2 | 8.0 |
| Dec | 17° / 7° | 33 | 5.8 | 9.7 | 6.1 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 54% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Al-'Alam gets around 103 mm of rain over 18 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 10 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 h 48 min in early December to 11 h 06 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 3.2 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Al-'Alam
None of Al-'Alam's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Al-'Alam sees seasonal dust haze (March–August), heaviest in May.
Is winter a good time to visit Al-'Alam?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a reasonable time to visit Al-'Alam for sightseeing.
What to pack for Al-'Alam in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Al-'Alam sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 7°C. Worth packing: a warm layer. About 18 days see rain.
UV index in Al-'Alam in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Al-'Alam peaks around June 14 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 13 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Extreme | Moderate | Very high | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | Moderate |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 4 | Moderate |
| Apr | 5 | High |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Extreme |
| Jul | 5 | Moderate |
| Aug | 8 | Very high |
| Sep | 5 | Moderate |
| Oct | 5 | Moderate |
| Nov | 3 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Air quality in Al-'Alam in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Al-'Alam is worst in July — around 60 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 45 | 46 | 51 | 50 | 55 | 56 | 60 | 57 | 50 | 47 | 42 | 46 |
| Level | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | Poor |
| Feb | 46 | Poor |
| Mar | 51 | Poor |
| Apr | 50 | Poor |
| May | 55 | Poor |
| Jun | 56 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 60 | Unhealthy |
| Aug | 57 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 50 | Poor |
| Oct | 47 | Poor |
| Nov | 42 | Poor |
| Dec | 46 | Poor |
Where is Al-'Alam?
Al-'Alam sits at 34.7°N, 43.7°E, 94 m above sea level, in Iraq. The nearest listed city is Tikrīt, 10 km away.
Topography around Al-'Alam
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Al-'Alam.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Al-'Alam has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 28 m around an average of 97 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 68 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 464 m.
The land around Al-'Alam is covered by cropland (32%), bare terrain (22%) and trees (21%) within 3 km, bare terrain (44%) and cropland (40%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (59%) and cropland (25%) within 80 km.
Iraq travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / D / G
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 38% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $5,410
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.2 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 60%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 9.5
- per 100k, 2013
- Road deaths
- 27.3
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Very low
- EF EPI 406
- Religion
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 Al-'Alam (34.709°, 43.6951°, elevation 94 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.