Shelek weather in May

In May, Shelek sees average daytime highs of 21°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 87 mm of precipitation across 12.6 wet days and about 14.5 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 19°C in the first days to 23°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 54 min at the start of May to 15 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Shelek's 10th-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Shelek's year-round climate.

Daytime high
21°
5th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
87 mm
12.6 wet days
Daylight
14 h 30 min
5:28 AM – 7:59 PM
Cloud cover
61%
10th clearest
Wind
8 km/h
2nd windiest
Solar energy
6.24 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.1
out of 10

Shelek is village in Almaty Region, Kazakhstan.

Density
433/km²
people per km²

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

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 19°C in the first days to 23°C by the end.

A typical May day in Shelek reaches about 21°C in the afternoon and slips back to 9°C overnight — a 12°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 15°C and 27°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 5°C warmer than April and about 4°C cooler than June.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1197
2197
3197
4197
5198
6208
7208
8208
9208
10208
11208
12219
13219
14219
15219
16219
17219
18219
19219
202210
212210
222210
232210
242210
252210
262210
272311
282311
292311
302311
312311

How May really feels in Shelek

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May 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

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

Shelek weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-2° / -10°216.17.19.10.0
Feb / -8°256.77.110.20.0
Mar / -2°4910.56.511.61.3
Apr16° / 87132.713.24.6
May21° / 8712.60.314.56.1
Jun25° / 13°6210.4015.26.7
Jul27° / 15°488.2014.96.9
Aug26° / 14°387.3013.87.4
Sep22° / 418.10.112.37.2
Oct15° / 488.32.510.84.6
Nov / -4°428.55.79.50.9
Dec-0° / -8°2877.18.80.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

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

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 57%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14159
24159
34060
44060
54060
64060
74258
84258
94258
104357
114357
124357
134357
144357
154357
164357
174456
184357
194456
204456
214456
224456
234456
244555
254555
264456
274555
284555
294555
304555
314456

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitationSnow

Shelek gets around 87 mm of rain and snow over 12.6 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 41% and peaks near 44% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1444
2444
3433
4433
5423
6422
7412
8402
9402
10401
11401
12401
13401
14401
15401
16411
17411
18411
19421
20421
21421
22421
23421
24411
25411
26401
27400
28390
29390
30380
31380

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, May lands in the dry band about 99% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
11000
21000
31000
41000
51000
61000
71000
81000
91000
101000
111000
121000
131000
141000
151000
161000
171000
181000
19991
20991
21991
22991
23991
24991
25982
26982
27982
28973
29973
30973
31973

Wind in May

Winds average 8 km/h in May.

Across May, 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
19calm
29calm
39calm
49calm
59calm
69calm
79calm
89calm
99calm
109calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
208calm
218calm
228calm
238calm
248calm
258calm
268calm
278calm
288calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 54 min at the start of May to 15 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 66 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:47 AM to 5:15 AM, and sunset from 7:41 PM to 8:13 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.95:477:41
213.95:467:42
314.05:447:44
414.05:437:45
514.15:417:46
614.15:407:47
714.25:397:48
814.25:377:49
914.25:367:51
1014.35:357:52
1114.35:347:53
1214.45:327:54
1314.45:317:55
1414.45:307:56
1514.55:297:57
1614.55:287:59
1714.55:278:00
1814.65:268:01
1914.65:258:02
2014.75:248:03
2114.75:238:04
2214.75:228:05
2314.75:218:06
2414.85:208:07
2514.85:198:08
2614.85:198:09
2714.95:188:10
2814.95:178:11
2914.95:178:12
3014.95:168:13
3115.05:158:13

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 6.24 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.87 kWh/m² to a high of 6.46 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 6.24 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.9Bright
25.9Bright
36.0Bright
46.0Bright
56.0Intense
66.0Intense
76.1Intense
86.1Intense
96.1Intense
106.2Intense
116.2Intense
126.2Intense
136.2Intense
146.3Intense
156.3Intense
166.3Intense
176.3Intense
186.3Intense
196.3Intense
206.3Intense
216.3Intense
226.3Intense
236.3Intense
246.4Intense
256.4Intense
266.4Intense
276.4Intense
286.4Intense
296.4Intense
306.4Intense
316.4Intense
Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Shelek?

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

6.1
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
3.7
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Shelek for sightseeing.

What to pack for Shelek in May

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

In May, Shelek sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 9°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

sun protectionrain gear

UV index in Shelek in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 9 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shelek peaks around July 21 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. 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 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateVery highModerateLowJul 21UV 9Dec 22UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar4Moderate
Apr5Moderate
May9Very high
Jun7Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Shelek in May

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Shelek is worst in April — around 20 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.9× the cleanest month (December, 5 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 2020 µg/m³Dec 185 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb9Good
Mar17Moderate
Apr20Moderate
May19Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul15Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep14Moderate
Oct13Moderate
Nov8Good
Dec5Good
Location & terrain

Where is Shelek?

Shelek sits at 43.6°N, 78.3°E, 609 m above sea level, in Kazakhstan. The nearest listed city is Esik, 70 km away.

Topography around Shelek

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shelek has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 80 m around an average of 606 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 667 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,883 m.

The land around Shelek is covered by grassland (34%) and artificial surfaces (29%) within 3 km, grassland (52%) and cropland (36%) within 16 km, and grassland (63%) within 80 km.

3 km
80 m
16 km
667 m
80 km
3,883 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmoss and lichen
May weather nearby: Esik 70 km · Talgar 89 km · Konayev 101 km · Otegen Batyra 102 km · Almaty 115 km · Burunday 116 km · Karakol 123 km · Kyzyl-Suu 141 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 Shelek (43.5962°, 78.2575°, elevation 609 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).