Norilsk in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Norilsk sees average daytime highs around -23°C and overnight lows near -29°C, with 105 mm of precipitation over about 27 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -23°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Norilsk's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Norilsk's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -23°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -29°C
- Precipitation
- 105 mm
- 27 wet days
- Avg wind
- 15 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- 3rd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Norilsk in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -23°C.
A typical winter day in Norilsk reaches about -23°C and drops to -29°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Norilsk
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Norilsk weather by month
How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | -24° / -30° | 32 | 8.8 | 12 | 1 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -23° / -29° | 30 | 7.8 | 10.8 | 6.5 | 0.0 |
| Mar | -16° / -23° | 38 | 9.7 | 12.1 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Apr | -9° / -16° | 45 | 9.5 | 10.9 | 15.4 | 0.0 |
| May | -1° / -7° | 50 | 10.3 | 9.6 | 20.9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 11° / 4° | 64 | 11.7 | 2.5 | 24 | 2.3 |
| Jul | 17° / 10° | 75 | 11.2 | 0 | 23.2 | 5.1 |
| Aug | 14° / 8° | 85 | 13.5 | 0.2 | 17.5 | 3.6 |
| Sep | 6° / 1° | 70 | 12.4 | 4.5 | 12.9 | 0.7 |
| Oct | -6° / -11° | 74 | 14.1 | 14.8 | 8.5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | -18° / -23° | 47 | 9.6 | 12.3 | 2.9 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -23° / -28° | 42 | 10 | 13.5 | 0 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 14% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Norilsk gets around 105 mm of rain and snow over 27 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 15 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 0 hours in early December to 8 h 36 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 0.2 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Norilsk?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Norilsk.
What to pack for Norilsk in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Norilsk sees daytime highs around -23°C and nights near -29°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 27 days see rain.
UV index in Norilsk in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 0. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Norilsk peaks around July 15 at about 4 (moderate) — a little sun protection helps at midday. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 3 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Low |
| Feb | 0 | Low |
| Mar | 1 | Low |
| Apr | 2 | Moderate |
| May | 4 | Moderate |
| Jun | 3 | Moderate |
| Jul | 4 | Moderate |
| Aug | 3 | Moderate |
| Sep | 1 | Low |
| Oct | 1 | Low |
| Nov | 0 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Where is Norilsk?
Norilsk sits at 69.4°N, 88.2°E, 76 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Talnakh, 17 km away.
Topography around Norilsk
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Norilsk.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Norilsk has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 86 m around an average of 64 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 657 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,136 m.
The land around Norilsk is covered by water (35%) and artificial surfaces (24%) within 3 km, moss and lichen (30%) within 16 km, and grassland (40%) and moss and lichen (24%) within 80 km.
Russia travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 32% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $17,547
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.8 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 76%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 6.8
- per 100k, 2021
- Road deaths
- 12
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 521
- 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 Norilsk (69.3535°, 88.2027°, elevation 76 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.