Qal‘at Şāliḩ in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Qal‘at Şāliḩ sees average daytime highs around 20°C and overnight lows near 10°C, with 95 mm of rain over about 14 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 20°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 60% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Qal‘at Şāliḩ's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Qal‘at Şāliḩ's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 20°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 10°C
- Rainfall
- 95 mm
- 14 wet days
- Avg wind
- 11 km/h
- Travel score
- 7.5
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Qal‘at Şāliḩ in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 20°C.
A typical winter day in Qal‘at Şāliḩ reaches about 20°C and drops to 10°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Qal‘at Şāliḩ
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.
Qal‘at Şāliḩ 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 | 18° / 9° | 37 | 5.4 | 10.2 | 7.1 |
| Feb | 21° / 11° | 24 | 3.7 | 10.8 | 8.0 |
| Mar | 27° / 15° | 24 | 3.6 | 11.8 | 7.8 |
| Apr | 33° / 20° | 18 | 3.1 | 12.7 | 4.2 |
| May | 40° / 26° | 5 | 1.1 | 13.6 | 0.6 |
| Jun | 45° / 30° | 0 | 0.1 | 14 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 47° / 32° | 0 | 0 | 13.8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 47° / 32° | 0 | 0 | 13.2 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 43° / 28° | 0 | 0.2 | 12.2 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 36° / 22° | 11 | 1.2 | 11.2 | 2.5 |
| Nov | 26° / 15° | 35 | 3.6 | 10.4 | 7.6 |
| Dec | 20° / 10° | 34 | 5 | 10 | 7.4 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 60% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Qal‘at Şāliḩ gets around 95 mm of rain over 14 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 11 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 06 min in early December to 11 h 12 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 3.6 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Qal‘at Şāliḩ
None of Qal‘at Şāliḩ's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Qal‘at Şāliḩ sees seasonal dust haze (March–July), heaviest in May.
Is winter a good time to visit Qal‘at Şāliḩ?
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 one of the better times to visit Qal‘at Şāliḩ for general sightseeing.
What to pack for Qal‘at Şāliḩ in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Qal‘at Şāliḩ sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 10°C. Little to plan around — just the basics. About 14 days see rain.
UV index in Qal‘at Şāliḩ in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Qal‘at Şāliḩ peaks around June 19 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 22 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 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | Moderate |
| Feb | 4 | Moderate |
| Mar | 5 | High |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 6 | High |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Air quality in Qal‘at Şāliḩ 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 Qal‘at Şāliḩ is worst in April — around 78 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) | 75 | 70 | 77 | 78 | 72 | 55 | 55 | 59 | 64 | 71 | 69 | 74 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 75 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 70 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 78 | Unhealthy |
| May | 72 | Unhealthy |
| Jun | 55 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 55 | Poor |
| Aug | 59 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 64 | Unhealthy |
| Oct | 71 | Unhealthy |
| Nov | 69 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 74 | Unhealthy |
Where is Qal‘at Şāliḩ?
Qal‘at Şāliḩ sits at 31.5°N, 47.3°E, 8 m above sea level, in Iraq. The nearest listed city is Al ‘Amārah, 37 km away.
Topography around Qal‘at Şāliḩ
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Qal‘at Şāliḩ.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Qal‘at Şāliḩ has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 8 m around an average of 5 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 18 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 231 m.
The land around Qal‘at Şāliḩ is covered by bare terrain (40%) and cropland (37%) within 3 km, cropland (62%) and bare terrain (24%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (40%) and cropland (34%) 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 Qal‘at Şāliḩ (31.528°, 47.2936°, elevation 8 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.