Shibukawa weather in December

In December, Shibukawa sees average daytime highs of 8°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 59 mm of precipitation across 10.8 wet days and about 9.6 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 12th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 10°C in the first days to 7°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 42 min at the start of December to 9 h 30 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Shibukawa's 1st-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Shibukawa's year-round climate.

Daytime high
10th warmest
Overnight low
3rd coldest
Precipitation
59 mm
10.8 wet days
Daylight
9 h 30 min
6:55 AM – 4:26 PM
Cloud cover
51%
1st clearest
Wind
8 km/h
4th windiest
Solar energy
2.33 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.5
out of 10

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 10°C in the first days to 7°C by the end.

A typical December day in Shibukawa reaches about 8°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 4°C and 12°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 5°C cooler than November and about 3°C warmer than January.

-5°10°15°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1113
2103
3103
4102
5102
6102
7102
892
992
1091
1191
1291
1381
1481
1581
1681
1780
1880
1980
2080
2170
2270
2370
2470
257-1
267-1
277-1
287-1
297-1
306-1
316-1

How December really feels in Shibukawa

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 26 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
26
wind chill below the day's low

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Shibukawa weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 12th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -2°6810.910.29.80.2
Feb / -2°6811.18.710.60.5
Mar10° / 11814.26.311.72.1
Apr16° / 12514.11.412.94.3
May20° / 12°14114.8013.95.6
Jun23° / 16°17817.4014.45.3
Jul27° / 20°21820.1014.24.8
Aug28° / 21°15718.1013.45.0
Sep24° / 17°20117.3012.25.4
Oct19° / 11°18014.9011.15.3
Nov13° / 749.60.410.13.9
Dec / 5910.85.19.61.5

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time in December, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 25% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 37%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
16040
26139
36040
46139
56139
66238
76139
86238
96238
106238
116238
126238
136139
146238
156238
166238
176238
186238
196238
206337
216337
226337
236436
246436
256436
266436
276535
286535
296535
306535
316535

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Shibukawa gets around 59 mm of rain and snow over 10.8 wet days in December, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 34% and peaks near 36% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1366
2367
3368
4368
5369
63610
73510
83511
93511
103412
113412
123313
133313
143314
153314
163315
173315
183316
193317
203418
213419
223420
233420
243421
253422
263423
273323
283324
293325
303325
313326

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, December 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 December

Winds average 8 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 7 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
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
68calm
78calm
88calm
98calm
108calm
118calm
128calm
138calm
148calm
158calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
208calm
218calm
228calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
269calm
279calm
289calm
299calm
309calm
319calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 42 min at the start of December to 9 h 30 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 6:43 AM to 7:01 AM, and sunset from 4:24 PM to 4:33 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.76:434:24
29.76:444:24
39.76:454:24
49.66:464:24
59.66:464:24
69.66:474:24
79.66:484:24
89.66:494:24
99.66:504:24
109.66:504:24
119.66:514:25
129.56:524:25
139.56:534:25
149.56:534:25
159.56:544:26
169.56:554:26
179.56:554:26
189.56:564:26
199.56:564:27
209.56:574:27
219.56:574:28
229.56:584:28
239.56:584:29
249.56:594:29
259.56:594:30
269.56:594:30
279.57:004:31
289.57:004:31
299.57:004:32
309.57:014:33
319.57:014:33

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 2.33 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.33 kWh/m² to a high of 5.42 kWh/m² in May across the year — December's 2.33 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.4Moderate
22.3Moderate
32.3Moderate
42.3Moderate
52.3Moderate
62.3Moderate
72.3Moderate
82.3Moderate
92.3Moderate
102.3Moderate
112.3Moderate
122.3Moderate
132.3Moderate
142.3Moderate
152.3Moderate
162.3Moderate
172.3Moderate
182.3Moderate
192.4Moderate
202.4Moderate
212.4Moderate
222.4Moderate
232.4Moderate
242.4Moderate
252.4Moderate
262.4Moderate
272.5Moderate
282.5Moderate
292.5Moderate
302.5Moderate
312.5Moderate
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Shibukawa?

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

1.5
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Shibukawa.

What to pack for Shibukawa in December

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

In December, Shibukawa sees daytime highs around 8°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Shibukawa in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

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

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shibukawa peaks around July 16 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 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 highModerateJul 16UV 9Dec 23UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Moderate

Air quality in Shibukawa in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Shibukawa is worst in April — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.1× the cleanest month (December, 10 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 1821 µg/m³Dec 1610 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb14Moderate
Mar19Moderate
Apr21Moderate
May20Moderate
Jun18Moderate
Jul15Moderate
Aug13Moderate
Sep12Good
Oct12Good
Nov11Good
Dec10Good
Location & terrain

Where is Shibukawa?

Shibukawa sits at 36.5°N, 139.0°E, 202 m above sea level, in Japan. The nearest listed city is Ogura, 3.0 km away.

Topography around Shibukawa

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shibukawa has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 342 m around an average of 252 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,478 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,850 m.

The land around Shibukawa is covered by artificial surfaces (42%) and trees (40%) within 3 km, trees (60%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 16 km, and trees (75%) within 80 km.

3 km
342 m
16 km
1,478 m
80 km
2,850 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
December weather nearby: Ogura 3.0 km · Kanekomachi 8.0 km · Maebashi 12 km · Takasaki 17 km · Numata 17 km · Nakanojō 18 km · Annaka 19 km · Minakami 23 km

Japan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
100 V · 50 / 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 65% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$35,951
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 446
Religion
Shintoism 49%Buddhism 46%other 4%Christianity 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 Shibukawa (36.4833°, 139°, elevation 202 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).