Kirkuk weather in May

In May, Kirkuk sees average daytime highs of 32°C and overnight lows near 19°C, with 17 mm of rain across 3.6 wet days and about 13.8 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 29°C in the first days to 36°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 24 min at the start of May to 14 h 12 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Kirkuk's 6th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Kirkuk's year-round climate.

Daytime high
32°
5th warmest
Overnight low
19°
8th coldest
Rainfall
17 mm
3.6 wet days
Daylight
13 h 54 min
5:03 AM – 6:55 PM
Cloud cover
31%
6th clearest
Wind
11 km/h
3rd windiest
Solar energy
7.29 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.7
out of 10

Kirkuk is city in Iraq.

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 29°C in the first days to 36°C by the end.

A typical May day in Kirkuk reaches about 32°C in the afternoon and slips back to 19°C overnight — a 13°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 27°C and 37°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 7°C warmer than April and about 6°C cooler than June.

10°20°30°40°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12816
22916
32916
42917
52917
63017
73017
83017
93018
103118
113118
123118
133118
143219
153219
163219
173319
183319
193320
203320
213420
223420
233420
243420
253521
263521
273521
283521
293621
303621
313622

How May really feels in Kirkuk

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 17 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
17
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

The story in May is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

Kirkuk weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan13° / 87100.79.93.7
Feb15° / 789.60.510.74.5
Mar19° / 779.20.111.76.5
Apr25° / 14°537.2012.97.4
May32° / 19°173.6013.84.7
Jun39° / 24°10.3014.31.0
Jul42° / 27°00.1014.20.0
Aug42° / 27°00.1013.30.0
Sep38° / 22°10.4012.21.8
Oct30° / 17°292.7011.16.0
Nov21° / 10°576.3010.17.4
Dec15° / 818.90.19.64.8

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 15% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 18%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17030
27129
37129
47129
57228
67327
77327
87525
97525
107723
117723
127921
138020
148119
158218
168416
178515
188515
198713
208713
218713
228713
238812
248911
258911
268911
279010
289010
299010
30928
31928

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Kirkuk gets around 17 mm of rain over 3.6 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 11% and peaks near 20% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
120
220
320
419
519
619
718
817
917
1016
1115
1214
1313
1412
1511
1610
179
189
198
207
217
226
236
246
256
265
275
285
294
304
314

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 93% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
19010
29010
39010
49010
59010
69010
79010
89010
9919
10919
11919
12928
13928
14928
15937
16937
17946
18946
19955
20955
21955
22964
23964
24964
25973
26973
27982
28982
29982
30991
31991

Wind in May

Winds average 11 km/h in May.

Across May, 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
310calm
410calm
510calm
610calm
710calm
810calm
910calm
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 May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 24 min at the start of May to 14 h 12 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 48 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:17 AM to 4:54 AM, and sunset from 6:42 PM to 7:06 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.45:176:42
213.45:166:43
313.55:156:44
413.55:146:45
513.55:136:45
613.65:126:46
713.65:116:47
813.65:106:48
913.75:096:49
1013.75:086:50
1113.75:076:50
1213.85:066:51
1313.85:056:52
1413.85:046:53
1513.85:046:54
1613.95:036:55
1713.95:026:55
1813.95:016:56
1913.95:016:57
2014.05:006:58
2114.04:596:59
2214.04:596:59
2314.04:587:00
2414.14:577:01
2514.14:577:02
2614.14:567:02
2714.14:567:03
2814.14:557:04
2914.24:557:04
3014.24:547:05
3114.24:547:06

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 7.29 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.51 kWh/m² to a high of 7.97 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 7.29 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

02468151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
16.8Intense
26.8Intense
36.8Intense
46.9Intense
56.9Intense
66.9Intense
77.0Intense
87.0Intense
97.0Intense
107.1Intense
117.1Intense
127.2Intense
137.2Intense
147.3Intense
157.3Intense
167.3Intense
177.4Intense
187.4Intense
197.4Intense
207.5Intense
217.5Intense
227.5Intense
237.5Intense
247.6Intense
257.6Intense
267.6Intense
277.7Intense
287.7Intense
297.7Intense
307.7Intense
317.7Intense
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Kirkuk

In seasonPeak

In May, Kirkuk sits inside its dust season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

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

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

Is May a good time to visit Kirkuk?

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

4.7
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
7.5
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Kirkuk for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Kirkuk in May

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

In May, Kirkuk sees daytime highs around 32°C and nights near 19°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. About 4 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

UV index in Kirkuk in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 8 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kirkuk peaks around June 15 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 2 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highModerateJun 15UV 10Jan 12UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun10Extreme
Jul7High
Aug9Very high
Sep7Very high
Oct5Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Kirkuk in May

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Kirkuk is worst in March — around 55 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorUnhealthyPoorMay 1555 µg/m³Jan 1548 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan48Poor
Feb50Poor
Mar55Unhealthy
Apr55Poor
May55Unhealthy
Jun55Poor
Jul52Poor
Aug53Poor
Sep55Poor
Oct54Poor
Nov49Poor
Dec49Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Kirkuk?

Kirkuk sits at 35.5°N, 44.4°E, 346 m above sea level, in Iraq. The nearest listed city is Tāzah Khūrmātū, 19 km away.

Ţūz KhūrmātūKoysinceqKhasnahzānErbilHajiawa

Topography around Kirkuk

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kirkuk has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 79 m around an average of 348 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 407 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,748 m.

The land around Kirkuk is covered by artificial surfaces (77%) within 3 km, cropland (33%), grassland (30%) and bare terrain (21%) within 16 km, and grassland (41%) and cropland (41%) within 80 km.

3 km
79 m
16 km
407 m
80 km
1,748 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Tāzah Khūrmātū 19 km · Jamjamāl 41 km · Shūrash 41 km · Ţūz Khūrmātū 68 km · Koysinceq 72 km · Khasnahzān 85 km · Erbil 87 km · Hajiawa 93 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
Christian 1%

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 Kirkuk (35.4681°, 44.3922°, elevation 346 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).