Climate and average weather in Kidal
In Kidal, the summers are sweltering, dry, and clear and the winters are warm and mostly clear.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Kidal typically varies from 13°C to 41°C, and is rarely below 10°C or above 44°C. June is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Kidal for warm-weather activities are from early January to mid February and mid December to late December.
- Hottest
- Jun
- 41°
- Coldest
- Jan
- 13°
- Wettest
- Aug
- 17 mm
- Driest
- Dec
- 0 mm
- Rain / yr
- 40 mm
- 12 wet days
- Daylight
- 10.9–13.1 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 457 m
- 18.4°N
- Clearest
- Jun
- 23% cloud
Kidal weather by month, at a glance
The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.
Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around early January to mid February.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Kidal, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
The hot season lasts 6.2 months, from April 8 to October 14, with daily high temperatures above 38°C. The hottest month of the year in Kidal is June, with an average high of 41°C and low of 29°C.
The cool season lasts 2.0 months, from December 10 to February 8, with daily high temperatures below 29°C. The coldest month of the year in Kidal is January, with an average low of 13°C and high of 27°C.
Days typically run about 13°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 15°C) in April.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 27 | 30 | 34 | 39 | 41 | 41 | 40 | 39 | 39 | 37 | 33 | 28 |
| Avg low (°C) | 13 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 19 | 15 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 13 |
| Feb | 30 | 16 |
| Mar | 34 | 20 |
| Apr | 39 | 24 |
| May | 41 | 28 |
| Jun | 41 | 29 |
| Jul | 40 | 28 |
| Aug | 39 | 27 |
| Sep | 39 | 27 |
| Oct | 37 | 24 |
| Nov | 33 | 19 |
| Dec | 28 | 15 |
How hot and cold Kidal really feels
The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.
On the hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Kidal feels like about 42°C (around June 10). About 267 days a year carry some heat stress, and 143 of them tip into dangerous heat (feels-like above 39°C), peaking in June.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 27 | 30 | 34 | 39 | 41 | 41 | 40 | 39 | 39 | 37 | 33 | 28 |
| Air high (°C) | 27 | 30 | 34 | 39 | 41 | 41 | 40 | 39 | 39 | 37 | 33 | 28 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | 13 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 19 | 15 |
| Air low (°C) | 13 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 19 | 15 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 27 | 13 | 13 |
| Feb | 30 | 30 | 16 | 16 |
| Mar | 34 | 34 | 20 | 20 |
| Apr | 39 | 39 | 24 | 24 |
| May | 41 | 41 | 28 | 28 |
| Jun | 41 | 41 | 29 | 29 |
| Jul | 40 | 40 | 28 | 28 |
| Aug | 39 | 39 | 27 | 27 |
| Sep | 39 | 39 | 27 | 27 |
| Oct | 37 | 37 | 24 | 24 |
| Nov | 33 | 33 | 19 | 19 |
| Dec | 28 | 28 | 15 | 15 |
Average hourly temperature in Kidal
A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on June afternoons, near 41°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near 13°C.
Kidal weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27° / 13° | 1 | 0.3 | 11 | 8.4 |
| Feb | 30° / 16° | 0 | 0.1 | 11.4 | 6.6 |
| Mar | 34° / 20° | 0 | 0 | 11.9 | 3.8 |
| Apr | 39° / 24° | 0 | 0 | 12.4 | 0.9 |
| May | 41° / 28° | 1 | 0.4 | 12.9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 41° / 29° | 3 | 1.2 | 13.1 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 40° / 28° | 9 | 3.1 | 13 | 0.2 |
| Aug | 39° / 27° | 17 | 5.3 | 12.6 | 0.8 |
| Sep | 39° / 27° | 5 | 1.7 | 12.1 | 0.6 |
| Oct | 37° / 24° | 2 | 0.3 | 11.6 | 1.7 |
| Nov | 33° / 19° | 0 | 0 | 11.1 | 4.7 |
| Dec | 28° / 15° | 0 | 0 | 10.9 | 7.5 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Kidal gets about 40 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is mostly dry, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 3.4 months, from around Jun 15 to Sep 24, peaking in August at about 17% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Feb 7.
August is the wettest month by volume, with 17 mm over about 5 wet days; December is the driest, with 0 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 17 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rain days | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | 0 |
| Feb | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 0 | 0 |
| May | 2 | 0 |
| Jun | 4 | 1 |
| Jul | 10 | 3 |
| Aug | 17 | 5 |
| Sep | 6 | 2 |
| Oct | 1 | 0 |
| Nov | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 0 | 0 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Kidal collects about 40 mm of rain across 12 wet days — roughly 3 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. August is the wettest month with 17 mm, while December is the driest at just 0 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 78% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 17 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Rain days | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | 0 |
| Feb | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 0 | 0 |
| May | 1 | 0 |
| Jun | 3 | 1 |
| Jul | 9 | 3 |
| Aug | 17 | 5 |
| Sep | 5 | 2 |
| Oct | 2 | 0 |
| Nov | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 0 | 0 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Kidal, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.
The clearer part of the year begins around May 22 and lasts for 5.4 months, ending around November 1. The clearest month is July, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 96% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around November 2 and lasts for 3.8 months, ending around February 26. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 30% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 73 | 78 | 82 | 82 | 84 | 94 | 96 | 89 | 92 | 87 | 75 | 70 |
| Cloudier (%) | 27 | 22 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 25 | 30 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 73 | 27 |
| Feb | 78 | 22 |
| Mar | 82 | 18 |
| Apr | 82 | 18 |
| May | 84 | 16 |
| Jun | 94 | 6 |
| Jul | 96 | 4 |
| Aug | 89 | 11 |
| Sep | 92 | 8 |
| Oct | 87 | 13 |
| Nov | 75 | 25 |
| Dec | 70 | 30 |
Daylight, sunrise and sunset
Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.
The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 5, brings about 13 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 10 h 54 min — a swing of roughly 2 h 12 min.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 11.0 | 11.4 | 11.9 | 12.4 | 12.9 | 13.1 | 13.0 | 12.6 | 12.1 | 11.6 | 11.1 | 10.9 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 6:34 | 6:28 | 6:08 | 5:42 | 5:25 | 5:22 | 5:30 | 5:40 | 5:46 | 5:52 | 6:06 | 6:24 |
| Sunset (PM) | 5:34 | 5:50 | 6:00 | 6:07 | 6:17 | 6:28 | 6:30 | 6:17 | 5:52 | 5:27 | 5:13 | 5:17 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11.0 | 6:34 | 5:34 |
| Feb | 11.4 | 6:28 | 5:50 |
| Mar | 11.9 | 6:08 | 6:00 |
| Apr | 12.4 | 5:42 | 6:07 |
| May | 12.9 | 5:25 | 6:17 |
| Jun | 13.1 | 5:22 | 6:28 |
| Jul | 13.0 | 5:30 | 6:30 |
| Aug | 12.6 | 5:40 | 6:17 |
| Sep | 12.1 | 5:46 | 5:52 |
| Oct | 11.6 | 5:52 | 5:27 |
| Nov | 11.1 | 6:06 | 5:13 |
| Dec | 10.9 | 6:24 | 5:17 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Kidal averages about 22 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 16 and 27 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 5.3 months, from around May 24 to Nov 1. The sunniest month is June, with roughly 26 sunny days (brilliant).
The greyest month is December, down near 18 sunny days — about 31% fewer than the June peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 19 | 19 | 22 | 21 | 22 | 25 | 26 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 19 | 18 |
| Sky | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Brilliant | Brilliant | Bright | Brilliant | Bright | Bright | Bright |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19 | Bright |
| Feb | 19 | Bright |
| Mar | 22 | Bright |
| Apr | 21 | Bright |
| May | 22 | Bright |
| Jun | 25 | Brilliant |
| Jul | 26 | Brilliant |
| Aug | 23 | Bright |
| Sep | 24 | Brilliant |
| Oct | 23 | Bright |
| Nov | 19 | Bright |
| Dec | 18 | Bright |
Humidity comfort
Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.
Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.
In Kidal, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.
The more humid part of the year lasts 2.8 months, from around June 29 to September 21. The muggiest month is August, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 55% of the time.
The most comfortable stretch runs from around September 22 to June 28, and February is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 99 | 95 | 82 | 46 | 26 | 67 | 95 | 100 | 100 |
| Comfortable (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 20 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Humid (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 21 | 28 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Muggy (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 21 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Oppressive (%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | Muggy (%) | Oppressive (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr | 99 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 95 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jun | 82 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Jul | 46 | 20 | 21 | 11 | 1 |
| Aug | 26 | 19 | 28 | 21 | 5 |
| Sep | 67 | 15 | 12 | 5 | 1 |
| Oct | 95 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Wind
Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.
This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.
Across the year, average wind speed in Kidal is typically light breeze, near 16 km/h, and varies moderately with the seasons.
The windier part of the year lasts 4.9 months, from around Dec 4 to May 2. The windiest month is January, averaging about 18 km/h (light breeze).
The calmer part of the year runs from around May 3 to Oct 18, with September the calmest month at about 14 km/h.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 18 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 17 |
| Feels | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | light breeze |
| Feb | 18 | light breeze |
| Mar | 17 | light breeze |
| Apr | 16 | light breeze |
| May | 15 | light breeze |
| Jun | 14 | light breeze |
| Jul | 15 | light breeze |
| Aug | 14 | light breeze |
| Sep | 14 | light breeze |
| Oct | 16 | light breeze |
| Nov | 16 | light breeze |
| Dec | 17 | light breeze |
Hazard calendar for Kidal
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Kidal sees dust haze year-round, heaviest in June.
Best time to visit Kidal
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Kidal throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around early February, Kidal is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.
Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.
The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Kidal for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid December to mid February, with a peak score in the second week of January.
The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel score (0–10) | 8.4 | 6.6 | 3.8 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 4.7 | 7.5 |
| Rating | ideal | good | fair | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | poor | fair | good |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8.4 | ideal |
| Feb | 6.6 | good |
| Mar | 3.8 | fair |
| Apr | 0.9 | poor |
| May | 0.0 | poor |
| Jun | 0.0 | poor |
| Jul | 0.2 | poor |
| Aug | 0.8 | poor |
| Sep | 0.6 | poor |
| Oct | 1.8 | poor |
| Nov | 4.7 | fair |
| Dec | 7.5 | good |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Kidal for hot-weather activities is from early November to late March, with a peak score in the first week of February.
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
What to pack for Kidal, by month
Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.
For a warm-season trip around June (highs near 41°C), the essentials are light clothes and sun protection. In the cold season around January (highs near 27°C), pack light clothes and sun protection.
In June, Kidal sees daytime highs around 41°C and nights near 29°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection.
UV index (midday) in Kidal by month
Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kidal peaks around March 20 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 7 (high).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 7 | 9 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 6 |
| Level | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | High |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | Very high |
| Feb | 9 | Very high |
| Mar | 12 | Extreme |
| Apr | 11 | Extreme |
| May | 11 | Extreme |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 10 | Extreme |
| Sep | 11 | Extreme |
| Oct | 10 | Very high |
| Nov | 8 | Very high |
| Dec | 6 | High |
Average hourly UV index in Kidal
Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.
The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in March the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 6 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7.5 | 7 | 6 | 5.5 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 3 | 4.5 | 6 | 5.5 | 6 | 5.5 | 5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5 | 3.5 | 2 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | 3 |
| Feb | 7 | 4.5 |
| Mar | 8 | 6 |
| Apr | 8 | 5.5 |
| May | 8 | 6 |
| Jun | 8 | 5.5 |
| Jul | 8 | 5 |
| Aug | 8 | 5.5 |
| Sep | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| Oct | 7 | 5 |
| Nov | 6 | 3.5 |
| Dec | 5.5 | 2 |
Air quality in Kidal by month
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.
Air quality in Kidal is worst in January — around 108 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 2.2× the cleanest month (September, 50 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 108 | 104 | 94 | 71 | 78 | 78 | 77 | 66 | 50 | 63 | 63 | 100 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Poor | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 108 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 104 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 94 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 71 | Unhealthy |
| May | 78 | Unhealthy |
| Jun | 78 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 77 | Unhealthy |
| Aug | 66 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 50 | Poor |
| Oct | 63 | Unhealthy |
| Nov | 63 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 100 | Unhealthy |
Growing season
Kidal is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Frost nights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 |
Growing degree days
Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Kidal banks about 6,983 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around June.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 313 | 363 | 528 | 641 | 755 | 755 | 740 | 709 | 690 | 647 | 478 | 363 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 313 |
| Feb | 363 |
| Mar | 528 |
| Apr | 641 |
| May | 755 |
| Jun | 755 |
| Jul | 740 |
| Aug | 709 |
| Sep | 690 |
| Oct | 647 |
| Nov | 478 |
| Dec | 363 |
Solar energy
Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.
Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.
Kidal receives about 6.6 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — intense — with a clear seasonal swing between 5.2 and 7.5 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 7.1 months, from around Feb 28 to Oct 2. The brightest month is April, averaging about 7.5 kWh/m² (intense).
The dimmest month is December, down near 5.2 kWh/m² — roughly 30% less than the April peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 5.4 | 6.2 | 6.9 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.3 | 7.1 | 6.9 | 6.8 | 6.3 | 5.7 | 5.2 |
| Level | Bright | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Intense | Bright | Bright |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5.4 | Bright |
| Feb | 6.2 | Intense |
| Mar | 6.9 | Intense |
| Apr | 7.5 | Intense |
| May | 7.5 | Intense |
| Jun | 7.3 | Intense |
| Jul | 7.1 | Intense |
| Aug | 6.9 | Intense |
| Sep | 6.8 | Intense |
| Oct | 6.3 | Intense |
| Nov | 5.7 | Bright |
| Dec | 5.2 | Bright |
Where is Kidal?
Kidal sits at 18.4°N, 1.4°E, 457 m above sea level, in Mali. The nearest listed city is Bourem, 249 km away.
Topography around Kidal
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Kidal.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Kidal has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 48 m around an average of 460 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 184 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 487 m.
The land around Kidal is covered by bare terrain (90%) within 3 km, bare terrain (94%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (90%) within 80 km.
Mali travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / E
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 34% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $1,193
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.6 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Road deaths
- 22.7
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Low
- World Bank
- English
- Very low
- EF EPI 408
- Religion
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 Kidal (18.4434°, 1.4092°, elevation 457 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).