Mponela weather in March

In March, Mponela sees average daytime highs of 25°C and overnight lows near 17°C, with 167 mm of rain across 24 wet days and about 12.1 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 25°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 9% of the time in March, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 18 min at the start of March to 11 h 54 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Mponela's 9th-clearest and 10th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Mponela's year-round climate.

Daytime high
25°
6th warmest
Overnight low
17°
7th coldest
Rainfall
167 mm
24 wet days
Daylight
12 h 06 min
5:52 AM – 5:58 PM
Cloud cover
76%
9th clearest
Wind
9 km/h
10th windiest
Solar energy
5.23 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.5
out of 10

Mponela is human settlement.

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

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 25°C through the month.

A typical March day in Mponela reaches about 25°C in the afternoon and slips back to 17°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 23°C and 27°C. Set against its neighbours, March runs on par with February and on par with April.

15°20°25°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12518
22518
32518
42518
52518
62518
72518
82518
92518
102518
112518
122518
132518
142518
152518
162518
172518
182518
192518
202517
212517
222517
232517
242517
252517
262517
272517
282517
292517
302517
312517

Mponela weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 6th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 18°28828.512.73.8
Feb25° / 18°2252412.54.0
Mar25° / 17°1672412.14.5
Apr24° / 16°4110.211.77.0
May24° / 14°82.711.48.6
Jun22° / 12°20.711.28.6
Jul22° / 11°30.611.38.5
Aug24° / 13°20.411.69.0
Sep26° / 16°30.711.98.8
Oct28° / 18°153.412.37.5
Nov28° / 19°6411.412.65.8
Dec26° / 18°21124.612.84.3

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 9% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 75%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
11387
21486
31486
41486
51585
61585
71684
81783
91783
101882
111882
122080
132179
142179
152278
162377
172476
182476
192674
202773
212971
223070
233367
243466
253565
263763
273862
283961
294159
304258
314258

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitation

Mponela gets around 167 mm of rain over 24 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 77% and peaks near 86% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%100%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
186
285
385
484
583
683
782
882
981
1081
1181
1281
1381
1481
1580
1680
1780
1879
1979
2078
2177
2276
2374
2473
2572
2670
2769
2867
2966
3064
3162

Humidity in March

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, March lands in the humid band about 51% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 44% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
1014950
2015049
3015148
4015247
5015247
6025246
7025246
8025246
9025246
10025246
11025246
12035146
13035047
14035047
15044948
16044848
17054749
18054649
19064648
20064648
21064747
22074746
23074844
24084943
25085141
26095239
270105337
281105534
291115632
301125730
311135927

Wind in March

Winds average 9 km/h in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 10 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
109calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
169calm
179calm
189calm
199calm
209calm
2110calm
2210calm
2310calm
2410calm
2510calm
2610calm
2710calm
2810calm
2910calm
3010calm
3110calm

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 18 min at the start of March to 11 h 54 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 24 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 5:50 AM to 5:53 AM, and sunset from 6:07 PM to 5:47 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.35:506:07
212.35:506:06
312.35:506:06
412.25:506:05
512.25:506:05
612.25:516:04
712.25:516:03
812.25:516:03
912.25:516:02
1012.25:516:01
1112.25:516:01
1212.15:516:00
1312.15:526:00
1412.15:525:59
1512.15:525:58
1612.15:525:58
1712.15:525:57
1812.15:525:56
1912.15:525:55
2012.05:525:55
2112.05:525:54
2212.05:525:53
2312.05:525:53
2412.05:535:52
2512.05:535:51
2612.05:535:51
2712.05:535:50
2811.95:535:49
2911.95:535:48
3011.95:535:48
3111.95:535:47

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 5.23 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.82 kWh/m² to a high of 6.97 kWh/m² in October across the year — March's 5.23 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.1Bright
25.1Bright
35.1Bright
45.1Bright
55.2Bright
65.2Bright
75.2Bright
85.2Bright
95.2Bright
105.2Bright
115.2Bright
125.2Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.2Bright
165.2Bright
175.2Bright
185.2Bright
195.2Bright
205.2Bright
215.2Bright
225.2Bright
235.2Bright
245.2Bright
255.2Bright
265.2Bright
275.2Bright
285.2Bright
295.2Bright
305.2Bright
315.2Bright
Planning a trip in March

Hazard calendar for Mponela

In seasonPeak

In March, Mponela sits inside its monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Mponela's monsoon runs December–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is March a good time to visit Mponela?

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

4.5
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
4.2
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

March is a reasonable time to visit Mponela for sightseeing.

What to pack for Mponela in March

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

In March, Mponela sees daytime highs around 25°C and nights near 17°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 24 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothessun protection

UV index in Mponela in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 15 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Mponela peaks around January 19 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 9 (very high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeJan 19UV 16Jun 18UV 9
UV index (midday)Level
Jan16Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May10Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct12Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec14Extreme

Air quality in Mponela in March

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Mponela is worst in August — around 31 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.0× the cleanest month (December, 15 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateAug 2031 µg/m³Dec 1715 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan17Moderate
Feb19Moderate
Mar22Moderate
Apr22Moderate
May25Moderate
Jun28Moderate
Jul28Moderate
Aug31Moderate
Sep30Moderate
Oct24Moderate
Nov17Moderate
Dec15Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Mponela?

Mponela sits at 13.5°S, 33.7°E, 1,218 m above sea level, in Malawi. The nearest listed city is Lilongwe, 49 km away.

LilongweKasunguSalimaNkhotakotaMchinjiDedzaChipataMonkey Bay

Topography around Mponela

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Mponela has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 215 m around an average of 1,216 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 498 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,230 m.

The land around Mponela is covered by cropland (75%) within 3 km, cropland (85%) within 16 km, and cropland (61%) and grassland (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
215 m
16 km
498 m
80 km
1,230 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
March weather nearby: Lilongwe 49 km · Kasungu 62 km · Salima 83 km · Nkhotakota 90 km · Mchinji 97 km · Dedza 114 km · Chipata 118 km · Monkey Bay 141 km

Malawi travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 53% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$672
2025
Happiness
3.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
18%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.8
per 100k, 2012
Road deaths
33.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 465
Religion
Protestant 34%other Christian 27%Roman Catholic 17%Muslim 14%

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 Mponela (-13.531°, 33.7393°, elevation 1,218 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).