Balqash weather in December

In December, Balqash sees average daytime highs of -6°C and overnight lows near -11°C, with 13 mm of precipitation across 3.6 wet days and about 8.4 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about -3°C in the first days to -7°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 36 min at the start of December to 8 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Balqash's 10th-clearest and 11th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Balqash's year-round climate.

Daytime high
-6°
10th warmest
Overnight low
-11°
3rd coldest
Precipitation
13 mm
3.6 wet days
Daylight
8 h 24 min
8:46 AM – 5:07 PM
Cloud cover
63%
10th clearest
Wind
15 km/h
11th windiest
Solar energy
1.34 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Balqash is city in Kazakhstan.

Density
354/km²
people per km²
Founded
1932

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about -3°C in the first days to -7°C by the end.

A typical December day in Balqash reaches about -6°C in the afternoon and slips back to -11°C overnight — a 5°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -13°C and 1°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 7°C cooler than November and about 3°C warmer than January.

-20°-10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1-3-8
2-3-8
3-3-8
4-3-9
5-4-9
6-4-9
7-4-9
8-4-9
9-4-10
10-5-10
11-5-10
12-5-10
13-5-10
14-5-10
15-5-11
16-6-11
17-6-11
18-6-11
19-6-11
20-6-11
21-6-12
22-6-12
23-7-12
24-7-12
25-7-12
26-7-12
27-7-12
28-7-12
29-7-12
30-7-13
31-8-13

How December really feels in Balqash

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 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
31
31 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

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

Balqash weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-9° / -14°1043.98.80.0
Feb-6° / -12°103.22.7100.0
Mar / -5°143.91.111.60.1
Apr12° / 112.80.313.33.6
May21° / 13°143.3014.87.9
Jun27° / 19°154015.67.5
Jul29° / 21°153.3015.36.9
Aug27° / 19°62.20148.2
Sep20° / 13°41.1012.48.1
Oct11° / 103.20.210.63.6
Nov / -3°164.11.59.20.1
Dec-6° / -11°133.63.38.40.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 61%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14357
24258
34258
44258
54159
64159
74159
84159
94060
104060
114060
124060
133961
143961
154060
163961
173961
183862
193862
203763
213763
223763
233763
243763
253664
263664
273565
283565
293565
303565
313466

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Balqash gets around 13 mm of rain and snow over 3.6 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 12% and peaks near 15% on the wettest days, and about 3 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1119
2119
3119
4119
5119
6109
71010
81010
91010
101010
111110
121110
131111
141111
151111
161211
171211
181211
191211
201311
211311
221311
231311
241312
251312
261312
271412
281412
291412
301412
311513

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 15 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 15 km/h on the calmest days to 15 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

05101520151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
115light breeze
215light breeze
315light breeze
415light breeze
515light breeze
615light breeze
715light breeze
815light breeze
915light breeze
1015light breeze
1115light breeze
1215light breeze
1315light breeze
1415light breeze
1515light breeze
1615light breeze
1715light breeze
1815light breeze
1915light breeze
2015light breeze
2115light breeze
2215light breeze
2315light breeze
2415light breeze
2515light breeze
2615light breeze
2715light breeze
2815light breeze
2915light breeze
3015light breeze
3115light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 36 min at the start of December to 8 h 24 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 8:32 AM to 8:52 AM, and sunset from 5:08 PM to 5:15 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.68:325:08
28.68:335:08
38.68:345:07
48.58:355:07
58.58:365:07
68.58:375:07
78.58:385:06
88.58:395:06
98.48:405:06
108.48:415:06
118.48:425:06
128.48:435:06
138.48:435:06
148.48:445:06
158.48:455:07
168.48:465:07
178.38:465:07
188.38:475:07
198.38:485:08
208.38:485:08
218.38:495:08
228.38:495:09
238.38:505:09
248.38:505:10
258.38:505:10
268.38:515:11
278.38:515:12
288.48:515:12
298.48:525:13
308.48:525:14
318.48:525:15

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 1.34 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.34 kWh/m² to a high of 7.17 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 1.34 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.52151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.5Dim
21.4Dim
31.4Dim
41.4Dim
51.4Dim
61.4Dim
71.4Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.4Dim
121.4Dim
131.4Dim
141.3Dim
151.3Dim
161.3Dim
171.3Dim
181.3Dim
191.3Dim
201.3Dim
211.3Dim
221.3Dim
231.3Dim
241.3Dim
251.3Dim
261.3Dim
271.4Dim
281.4Dim
291.4Dim
301.4Dim
311.4Dim
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Balqash?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
8th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Balqash.

What to pack for Balqash in December

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

In December, Balqash sees daytime highs around -6°C and nights near -11°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 4 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Balqash in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Balqash peaks around August 10 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 22 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighVery highVery highModerateLowAug 10UV 7Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb2Low
Mar3Moderate
Apr5High
May7Very high
Jun7High
Jul7Very high
Aug7Very high
Sep5Moderate
Oct3Moderate
Nov1Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Balqash 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 Balqash is worst in April — around 46 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 6.3× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModeratePoorModerateGoodApr 1743 µg/m³Dec 228 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb11Good
Mar17Moderate
Apr46Poor
May23Moderate
Jun18Moderate
Jul17Moderate
Aug15Moderate
Sep16Moderate
Oct21Moderate
Nov13Moderate
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Balqash?

Balqash sits at 46.8°N, 75.0°E, 372 m above sea level, in Kazakhstan. The nearest listed city is Ushtobe, 292 km away.

UshtobeTaldykorganAbayKaragandyTekeliShakhtinskSaranKonayev

Topography around Balqash

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Balqash has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 72 m around an average of 369 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 428 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,084 m.

The land around Balqash is covered by bare terrain (35%), artificial surfaces (28%) and grassland (23%) within 3 km, grassland (50%) and water (29%) within 16 km, and grassland (60%) and water (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
72 m
16 km
428 m
80 km
1,084 m
shrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
December weather nearby: Ushtobe 292 km · Taldykorgan 332 km · Abay 348 km · Karagandy 357 km · Tekeli 364 km · Shakhtinsk 364 km · Saran 365 km · Konayev 369 km

Kazakhstan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 33% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$14,692
2025
Happiness
6.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
92%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2.6
per 100k, 2022
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 417
Religion
Muslim 69%Christian 17%non-believers 2%Buddhism 0%

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 Balqash (46.8455°, 74.9821°, elevation 372 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).