Simele weather in January

In January, Simele sees average daytime highs of 11°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 83 mm of precipitation across 10.1 wet days and about 9.8 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 11°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 39% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Simele's 12th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Simele's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11°
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
83 mm
10.1 wet days
Daylight
9 h 42 min
7:26 AM – 5:10 PM
Cloud cover
53%
12th clearest
Wind
7 km/h
8th windiest
Solar energy
2.49 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.7
out of 10

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 11°C through the month.

A typical January day in Simele reaches about 11°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 7°C and 14°C. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 2°C cooler than December and about 2°C cooler than February.

-5°10°15°20°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1113
2113
3113
4113
5113
6113
7113
8113
9113
10113
11113
12113
13112
14112
15112
16112
17112
18112
19112
20112
21112
22112
23112
24113
25113
26113
27113
28113
29113
30113
31113

How January really feels in Simele

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 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
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

January sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Simele weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan11° / 8310.11.59.82.7
Feb13° / 749.91.510.63.5
Mar17° / 8210.10.211.75.6
Apr23° / 12°588.6012.97.2
May30° / 17°254.2013.95.9
Jun37° / 22°10.4014.52.1
Jul40° / 25°00.1014.30.1
Aug40° / 25°00013.40.2
Sep35° / 20°10.3012.33.2
Oct28° / 15°243.30117.0
Nov19° / 526.20106.8
Dec13° / 758.80.79.53.7

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 39% of the time in January, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 48%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15248
25248
35248
45347
55248
65248
75248
85347
95248
105248
115347
125347
135347
145446
155446
165446
175347
185347
195347
205347
215149
225149
235149
245149
255149
265149
275149
285149
295149
305149
315149

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Simele gets around 83 mm of rain and snow over 10.1 wet days in January, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 32% and peaks near 37% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1324
2324
3324
4324
5324
6314
7314
8304
9304
10294
11293
12283
13283
14283
15283
16283
17283
18294
19304
20314
21324
22335
23345
24356
25366
26366
27377
28377
29377
30377
31378

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, January 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 January

Winds average 7 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 30 min at the start of January to 10 h 06 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 36 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:26 AM to 7:19 AM, and sunset from 4:57 PM to 5:25 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.57:264:57
29.57:274:58
39.57:274:59
49.57:274:59
59.67:275:00
69.67:275:01
79.67:275:02
89.67:275:03
99.67:275:04
109.67:275:04
119.67:275:05
129.77:275:06
139.77:275:07
149.77:265:08
159.77:265:09
169.77:265:10
179.87:265:11
189.87:255:12
199.87:255:13
209.87:255:14
219.87:245:15
229.97:245:16
239.97:235:17
249.97:235:18
259.97:225:19
2610.07:225:20
2710.07:215:21
2810.07:215:22
2910.17:205:23
3010.17:195:24
3110.17:195:25

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.49 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.25 kWh/m² to a high of 7.92 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.49 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.3Moderate
22.3Moderate
32.3Moderate
42.3Moderate
52.3Moderate
62.3Moderate
72.4Moderate
82.4Moderate
92.4Moderate
102.4Moderate
112.5Moderate
122.5Moderate
132.5Moderate
142.5Moderate
152.5Moderate
162.6Moderate
172.6Moderate
182.6Moderate
192.6Moderate
202.6Moderate
212.6Moderate
222.6Moderate
232.6Moderate
242.7Moderate
252.7Moderate
262.7Moderate
272.7Moderate
282.7Moderate
292.8Moderate
302.8Moderate
312.8Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Simele

In seasonPeak

None of Simele's seasonal hazards are active in January. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

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

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

Is January a good time to visit Simele?

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

2.7
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
12th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Simele.

What to pack for Simele in January

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

In January, Simele sees daytime highs around 11°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Simele in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Simele 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 highHighModerateJun 15UV 10Jan 12UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr6High
May8Very high
Jun10Extreme
Jul7Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep7Very high
Oct5High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Simele in January

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Simele is worst in March — around 40 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateMar 2140 µg/m³Dec 1027 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan29Moderate
Feb34Moderate
Mar40Poor
Apr39Poor
May38Poor
Jun35Poor
Jul31Moderate
Aug30Moderate
Sep30Moderate
Oct31Moderate
Nov27Moderate
Dec27Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Simele?

Simele sits at 36.9°N, 42.9°E, 463 m above sea level, in Iraq. The nearest listed city is Sumayl, 0.0 km away.

SilopiAl Mawşil al Jadīdah

Topography around Simele

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Simele has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 124 m around an average of 463 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,062 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,121 m.

The land around Simele is covered by cropland (47%), grassland (23%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 3 km, cropland (43%) and grassland (37%) within 16 km, and cropland (46%) and grassland (41%) within 80 km.

3 km
124 m
16 km
1,062 m
80 km
3,121 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
January weather nearby: Sumayl 0.0 km · Dihok 12 km · Sīnah 18 km · Zaxo 35 km · Batifa 38 km · Tallkayf 47 km · Silopi 55 km · Al Mawşil al Jadīdah 63 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 Simele (36.8583°, 42.8501°, elevation 463 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).