Nouakchott in Spring

In spring (March, April and May), Nouakchott sees average daytime highs around 30°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 1 mm of rain over about 0 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs climb from about 28°C in early March to 31°C by late May. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 76% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels dry.

Spring is Nouakchott's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Nouakchott's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
30°C
3rd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
20°C
Rainfall
1 mm
0 wet days
Avg wind
23 km/h
Travel score
7.0
2nd-best season
Months
Mar · Apr · May

Temperature in Nouakchott in Spring

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 28°C in early March to 31°C by late May.

A typical spring day in Nouakchott reaches about 30°C and drops to 20°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is May, the coolest March.

15°20°25°30°35°40°MarAprMay

How spring really feels in Nouakchott

Once humidity and wind are folded in, spring brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

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

Nouakchott weather by month

How the three spring months (March, April and May) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 17°20.3118.6
Feb27° / 18°10.311.48.3
Mar29° / 19°00.111.97.5
Apr29° / 20°0012.47.1
May30° / 21°0012.86.5
Jun31° / 23°0013.16.0
Jul30° / 24°20.4136.9
Aug31° / 26°132.412.65.9
Sep32° / 26°182.812.14.7
Oct33° / 25°61.111.64.5
Nov31° / 22°10.211.16.0
Dec27° / 19°40.310.98.1

Cloud cover in Spring

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 76% of the time across spring.

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Chance of precipitation in Spring

Any precipitation

Nouakchott gets around 1 mm of rain over 0 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%MarAprMay

Humidity in Spring

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Wind in Spring

Winds average 23 km/h across spring.

0102030MarAprMay

Sunrise & sunset in Spring

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min in early March to 13 hours by late May. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMMarAprMay

Solar energy in Spring

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 7.3 kWh/m².

02468MarAprMay
Planning a trip in spring

Hazard calendar for Nouakchott

In seasonPeak

In spring, Nouakchott overlaps its dust season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Nouakchott sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Nouakchott sees dust haze year-round, heaviest in June.

Atlantic hurricane
Dust
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is spring a good time to visit Nouakchott?

Our two travel scores rate spring for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

7.0
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
9.1
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

spring is one of the better times to visit Nouakchott for general sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Nouakchott in Spring

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

In spring, Nouakchott sees daytime highs around 30°C and nights near 20°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: a windbreaker.

light clothessun protectiona windbreaker

Sea temperature near Nouakchott in Spring

The nearest coast averages about 18°C across spring — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 16 km away) is warmest in September at about 27°C and coldest in April near 18°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jun 2 to Dec 23 — about 6.7 months when the water holds above 20°C.

15°20°25°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccoolrefreshingwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan19Cool
Feb18Cool
Mar18Cool
Apr18Cool
May19Cool
Jun21Refreshing
Jul25Warm
Aug27Warm
Sep27Warm
Oct25Warm
Nov23Refreshing
Dec21Refreshing

UV index in Nouakchott in Spring

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across spring averages around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Nouakchott peaks around March 16 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 16 at about 6 (high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highHighMar 16UV 12Dec 16UV 6
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb11Extreme
Mar12Extreme
Apr10Extreme
May10Extreme
Jun10Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep10Very high
Oct9Very high
Nov7Very high
Dec6High

Air quality in Nouakchott in Spring

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Nouakchott is worst in January — around 154 µg/m³ PM2.5 (very unhealthy), about 2.5× the cleanest month (August, 60 µg/m³).

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

0306090120150180JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyJan 15152 µg/m³Aug 1962 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan154Very unhealthy
Feb141Unhealthy
Mar110Unhealthy
Apr105Unhealthy
May113Unhealthy
Jun127Unhealthy
Jul79Unhealthy
Aug60Unhealthy
Sep71Unhealthy
Oct86Unhealthy
Nov88Unhealthy
Dec145Unhealthy
Location & terrain

Where is Nouakchott?

Nouakchott sits at 18.1°N, 16.0°W, 10 m above sea level, in Mauritania. The nearest listed city is Tevragh Zeina, 2.0 km away.

BoutilimittRossoTékaneRichard-TollDagana

Topography around Nouakchott

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Nouakchott has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 18 m around an average of 3 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 27 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 70 m.

The land around Nouakchott is covered by artificial surfaces (76%) and bare terrain (22%) within 3 km, bare terrain (60%) and water (30%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (65%) and water (29%) within 80 km.

3 km
18 m
16 km
27 m
80 km
70 m
treesshrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Spring weather nearby: Tevragh Zeina 2.0 km · Ksar 3.0 km · Dar Naim 6.0 km · Boutilimitt 148 km · Rosso 176 km · Tékane 178 km · Richard-Toll 183 km · Dagana 183 km

Mauritania travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type C / E / F
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 31% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$2,198
2025
Happiness
4.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
1
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
25.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
Religion
Muslim 100%

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 Nouakchott (18.0858°, -15.9785°, elevation 10 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.