Sinjār weather in January

In January, Sinjār sees average daytime highs of 11°C and overnight lows near 4°C, with 52 mm of precipitation across 8.7 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 43% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 36 min at the start of January to 10 h 06 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Sinjār's 12th-clearest and 10th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Sinjār's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11°
12th warmest
Overnight low
1st coldest
Precipitation
52 mm
8.7 wet days
Daylight
9 h 48 min
7:28 AM – 5:15 PM
Cloud cover
50%
12th clearest
Wind
9 km/h
10th windiest
Solar energy
2.7 kWh/m²
Travel score
3.0
out of 10

Sinjār is Yazidi town in northern Iraq.

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

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 Sinjār reaches about 11°C in the afternoon and slips back to 4°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 7°C and 15°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)
1124
2124
3124
4114
5114
6114
7114
8114
9114
10114
11114
12114
13114
14114
15114
16114
17114
18114
19114
20114
21114
22114
23114
24114
25114
26114
27114
28114
29114
30114
31114

How January really feels in Sinjār

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.

Sinjār 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° / 528.70.59.83.0
Feb13° / 448.20.410.64.0
Mar18° / 487.5011.76.4
Apr24° / 14°325.7012.97.7
May31° / 19°163.5013.95.3
Jun38° / 24°10.4014.41.7
Jul41° / 27°00.1014.20.0
Aug40° / 27°00.1013.40.1
Sep36° / 23°10.2012.22.8
Oct29° / 18°172.9011.16.8
Nov20° / 10°345.5010.17.1
Dec13° / 487.30.39.64.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 43% of the time in January, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 44%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15644
25644
35644
45644
55644
65644
75644
85644
95644
105644
115644
125743
135743
145743
155842
165743
175743
185743
195743
205743
215644
225644
235545
245545
255545
265545
275644
285644
295644
305644
315644

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Sinjār gets around 52 mm of rain and snow over 8.7 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 27% and peaks near 30% on the wettest days, and about 1 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1261
2271
3271
4271
5271
6261
7261
8261
9261
10261
11251
12251
13251
14251
15251
16251
17251
18251
19251
20261
21271
22281
23282
24292
25292
26302
27302
28302
29302
30302
31302

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 9 km/h in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 9 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
18calm
28calm
38calm
48calm
58calm
68calm
78calm
88calm
98calm
108calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
169calm
179calm
189calm
199calm
209calm
219calm
229calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
269calm
279calm
289calm
299calm
309calm
319calm

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 36 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 30 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 7:29 AM to 7:21 AM, and sunset from 5:03 PM to 5:30 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.67:295:03
29.67:295:03
39.67:295:04
49.67:295:05
59.67:295:06
69.67:295:06
79.67:295:07
89.67:295:08
99.77:295:09
109.77:295:10
119.77:295:11
129.77:295:11
139.77:295:12
149.77:295:13
159.87:295:14
169.87:285:15
179.87:285:16
189.87:285:17
199.87:285:18
209.97:275:19
219.97:275:20
229.97:265:21
239.97:265:22
2410.07:265:23
2510.07:255:24
2610.07:245:25
2710.07:245:26
2810.17:235:27
2910.17:235:28
3010.17:225:29
3110.17:215:30

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 2.7 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.43 kWh/m² to a high of 8.07 kWh/m² in June across the year — January's 2.7 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

01234151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.5Moderate
22.5Moderate
32.5Moderate
42.5Moderate
52.5Moderate
62.5Moderate
72.6Moderate
82.6Moderate
92.6Moderate
102.6Moderate
112.6Moderate
122.7Moderate
132.7Moderate
142.7Moderate
152.7Moderate
162.7Moderate
172.8Moderate
182.8Moderate
192.8Moderate
202.8Moderate
212.8Moderate
222.9Moderate
232.9Moderate
242.9Moderate
252.9Moderate
262.9Moderate
273.0Moderate
283.0Moderate
293.0Moderate
303.0Moderate
313.1Moderate
Planning a trip in January

Hazard calendar for Sinjār

In seasonPeak

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

Sinjār 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 Sinjār?

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

3.0
Sightseeing
8th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
12th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Sinjār.

What to pack for Sinjār in January

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

In January, Sinjār sees daytime highs around 11°C and nights near 4°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Sinjār 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 Sinjār peaks around June 15 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 13 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 highVery highVery highHighModerateJun 15UV 10Jan 13UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul6High
Aug9Very high
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Sinjār 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 Sinjār is worst in June — around 45 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 1.7× the cleanest month (November, 27 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateJun 2345 µg/m³Nov 2327 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan29Moderate
Feb32Moderate
Mar39Poor
Apr39Poor
May42Poor
Jun45Poor
Jul45Poor
Aug42Poor
Sep37Poor
Oct33Moderate
Nov27Moderate
Dec27Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Sinjār?

Sinjār sits at 36.3°N, 41.9°E, 517 m above sea level, in Iraq. The nearest listed city is Al Mālikīyah, 98 km away.

Al MālikīyahAl QāmishlīNusaybinAl ḨasakahSumaylSimeleAl Mawşil al JadīdahMosul

Topography around Sinjār

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Sinjār has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 282 m around an average of 530 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,102 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,254 m.

The land around Sinjār is covered by grassland (36%) and cropland (29%) within 3 km, cropland (48%) and grassland (42%) within 16 km, and cropland (76%) within 80 km.

3 km
282 m
16 km
1,102 m
80 km
1,254 m
grasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
January weather nearby: Al Mālikīyah 98 km · Al Qāmishlī 100 km · Nusaybin 102 km · Al Ḩasakah 103 km · Sumayl 105 km · Simele 105 km · Al Mawşil al Jadīdah 110 km · Mosul 111 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 Sinjār (36.3209°, 41.8766°, elevation 517 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).