Climate and average weather in Phalaborwa
In Phalaborwa, the summers are humid, hot, showery, and partly cloudy and the winters are warm and clear.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Phalaborwa typically varies from 12°C to 32°C, and is rarely below 9°C or above 38°C. February is the hottest month of the year, while July is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best time of year to visit Phalaborwa for warm-weather activities is from early May to early September.
- Hottest
- Feb
- 32°
- Coldest
- Jul
- 12°
- Wettest
- Jan
- 94 mm
- Driest
- Jun
- 4 mm
- Rain / yr
- 436 mm
- 55 wet days
- Daylight
- 10.5–13.5 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 435 m
- 23.9°S
- Clearest
- Jun
- 20% cloud
Phalaborwa is town in South Africa.
- Founded
- 1957
Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.
Phalaborwa 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 May to early September.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Phalaborwa, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
Temperatures in Phalaborwa stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is February, with an average high of 32°C and low of 22°C; the coolest is July, with an average low of 12°C and high of 25°C.
Days typically run about 11°C warmer than nights, with the widest day–night swing (around 13°C) in June.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 32 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 |
| Avg low (°C) | 22 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 22 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 22 |
| Feb | 32 | 22 |
| Mar | 31 | 21 |
| Apr | 29 | 19 |
| May | 28 | 15 |
| Jun | 26 | 13 |
| Jul | 25 | 12 |
| Aug | 27 | 14 |
| Sep | 29 | 17 |
| Oct | 30 | 19 |
| Nov | 31 | 20 |
| Dec | 32 | 22 |
How hot and cold Phalaborwa 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, Phalaborwa feels like about 33°C (around February 1). About 93 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in February.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels-like high (°C) | 33 | 33 | 32 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 |
| Air high (°C) | 32 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 |
| Feels-like low (°C) | 22 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| Air low (°C) | 22 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 22 |
| Feels-like high (°C) | Air high (°C) | Feels-like low (°C) | Air low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 32 | 22 | 22 |
| Feb | 33 | 32 | 22 | 22 |
| Mar | 32 | 31 | 21 | 21 |
| Apr | 29 | 29 | 19 | 19 |
| May | 28 | 28 | 15 | 15 |
| Jun | 26 | 26 | 13 | 13 |
| Jul | 25 | 25 | 12 | 12 |
| Aug | 27 | 27 | 14 | 14 |
| Sep | 29 | 29 | 17 | 17 |
| Oct | 30 | 30 | 19 | 19 |
| Nov | 31 | 31 | 20 | 20 |
| Dec | 32 | 32 | 21 | 22 |
Average hourly temperature in Phalaborwa
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 February afternoons, near 32°C, and coldest before dawn in July, near 12°C.
Phalaborwa 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 | 32° / 22° | 94 | 9.4 | 13.3 | 4.2 |
| Feb | 32° / 22° | 68 | 8 | 12.8 | 4.3 |
| Mar | 31° / 21° | 43 | 6.4 | 12.2 | 5.0 |
| Apr | 29° / 19° | 21 | 3.8 | 11.5 | 6.4 |
| May | 28° / 15° | 9 | 1.7 | 10.9 | 8.1 |
| Jun | 26° / 13° | 4 | 0.8 | 10.6 | 8.9 |
| Jul | 25° / 12° | 5 | 0.6 | 10.7 | 9.0 |
| Aug | 27° / 14° | 4 | 1 | 11.2 | 8.4 |
| Sep | 29° / 17° | 11 | 2 | 11.9 | 6.8 |
| Oct | 30° / 19° | 24 | 4 | 12.6 | 5.8 |
| Nov | 31° / 20° | 62 | 7.9 | 13.2 | 4.7 |
| Dec | 32° / 22° | 93 | 9.8 | 13.5 | 4.2 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Phalaborwa gets about 436 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is some rain, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 5.5 months, from around Oct 22 to Apr 7, peaking in December at about 32% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Jul 4.
January is the wettest month by volume, with 94 mm over about 9 wet days; June is the driest, with 4 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 31 | 29 | 21 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 26 | 31 |
| Rain days | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 10 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 9 |
| Feb | 29 | 8 |
| Mar | 21 | 6 |
| Apr | 13 | 4 |
| May | 6 | 2 |
| Jun | 3 | 1 |
| Jul | 2 | 1 |
| Aug | 3 | 1 |
| Sep | 6 | 2 |
| Oct | 13 | 4 |
| Nov | 26 | 8 |
| Dec | 31 | 10 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Phalaborwa collects about 436 mm of rain across 55 wet days — roughly 36 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. January is the wettest month with 94 mm, while June is the driest at just 4 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 58% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 94 | 68 | 43 | 21 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 11 | 24 | 62 | 93 |
| Rain days | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 10 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 94 | 9 |
| Feb | 68 | 8 |
| Mar | 43 | 6 |
| Apr | 21 | 4 |
| May | 9 | 2 |
| Jun | 4 | 1 |
| Jul | 5 | 1 |
| Aug | 4 | 1 |
| Sep | 11 | 2 |
| Oct | 24 | 4 |
| Nov | 62 | 8 |
| Dec | 93 | 10 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Phalaborwa, 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 April 7 and lasts for 5.8 months, ending around September 29. The clearest month is June, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 87% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around September 30 and lasts for 6.2 months, ending around April 6. The cloudiest month is December, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 54% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 53 | 59 | 66 | 72 | 84 | 87 | 85 | 81 | 74 | 59 | 47 | 46 |
| Cloudier (%) | 47 | 41 | 34 | 28 | 16 | 13 | 15 | 19 | 26 | 41 | 53 | 54 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 47 |
| Feb | 59 | 41 |
| Mar | 66 | 34 |
| Apr | 72 | 28 |
| May | 84 | 16 |
| Jun | 87 | 13 |
| Jul | 85 | 15 |
| Aug | 81 | 19 |
| Sep | 74 | 26 |
| Oct | 59 | 41 |
| Nov | 47 | 53 |
| Dec | 46 | 54 |
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 January 1, brings about 13 h 30 min of light; the shortest, around June 12, only 10 h 30 min — a swing of roughly 3 hours.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 13.3 | 12.8 | 12.2 | 11.5 | 10.9 | 10.6 | 10.7 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 12.6 | 13.2 | 13.5 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 5:25 | 5:45 | 6:00 | 6:12 | 6:26 | 6:40 | 6:41 | 6:25 | 5:54 | 5:23 | 5:05 | 5:07 |
| Sunset (PM) | 6:45 | 6:35 | 6:10 | 5:39 | 5:17 | 5:12 | 5:21 | 5:34 | 5:46 | 5:58 | 6:16 | 6:36 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 13.3 | 5:25 | 6:45 |
| Feb | 12.8 | 5:45 | 6:35 |
| Mar | 12.2 | 6:00 | 6:10 |
| Apr | 11.5 | 6:12 | 5:39 |
| May | 10.9 | 6:26 | 5:17 |
| Jun | 10.6 | 6:40 | 5:12 |
| Jul | 10.7 | 6:41 | 5:21 |
| Aug | 11.2 | 6:25 | 5:34 |
| Sep | 11.9 | 5:54 | 5:46 |
| Oct | 12.6 | 5:23 | 5:58 |
| Nov | 13.2 | 5:05 | 6:16 |
| Dec | 13.5 | 5:07 | 6:36 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Phalaborwa averages about 16 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 7 and 24 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 5.8 months, from around Apr 12 to Oct 5. The sunniest month is June, with roughly 24 sunny days (brilliant).
The greyest month is December, down near 9 sunny days — about 64% fewer than the June peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 10 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 20 | 14 | 10 | 9 |
| Sky | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Bright | Bright | Brilliant | Bright | Bright | Bright | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | Mixed |
| Feb | 11 | Mixed |
| Mar | 14 | Mixed |
| Apr | 17 | Bright |
| May | 23 | Bright |
| Jun | 23 | Brilliant |
| Jul | 23 | Bright |
| Aug | 22 | Bright |
| Sep | 20 | Bright |
| Oct | 14 | Mixed |
| Nov | 10 | Mixed |
| Dec | 9 | Mixed |
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 Phalaborwa, how humid it feels changes dramatically over the year.
The more humid part of the year lasts 5.8 months, from around October 28 to April 23. The muggiest month is February, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 94% of the time.
The most comfortable stretch runs from around April 24 to October 27, and July 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 (%) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 51 | 87 | 94 | 84 | 60 | 29 | 11 | 2 |
| Comfortable (%) | 6 | 6 | 13 | 33 | 37 | 13 | 6 | 15 | 32 | 41 | 26 | 14 |
| Humid (%) | 31 | 33 | 43 | 40 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 26 | 38 | 38 |
| Muggy (%) | 47 | 45 | 35 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 23 | 37 |
| Oppressive (%) | 16 | 16 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | Muggy (%) | Oppressive (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | 6 | 31 | 47 | 16 |
| Feb | 0 | 6 | 33 | 45 | 16 |
| Mar | 1 | 13 | 43 | 35 | 8 |
| Apr | 12 | 33 | 40 | 13 | 1 |
| May | 51 | 37 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| Jun | 87 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jul | 94 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Aug | 84 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep | 60 | 32 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct | 29 | 41 | 26 | 4 | 0 |
| Nov | 11 | 26 | 38 | 23 | 3 |
| Dec | 2 | 14 | 38 | 37 | 9 |
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 Phalaborwa is typically calm, near 11 km/h, and varies little with the seasons.
The windier part of the year lasts 6.5 months, from around Sep 3 to Mar 18. The windiest month is October, averaging about 13 km/h (light breeze).
The calmer part of the year runs from around Mar 19 to Sep 2, with May the calmest month at about 10 km/h.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 13 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
| Feels | light breeze | light breeze | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze | light breeze |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 13 | light breeze |
| Feb | 13 | light breeze |
| Mar | 12 | calm |
| Apr | 10 | calm |
| May | 10 | calm |
| Jun | 10 | calm |
| Jul | 10 | calm |
| Aug | 11 | calm |
| Sep | 12 | light breeze |
| Oct | 13 | light breeze |
| Nov | 12 | light breeze |
| Dec | 12 | light breeze |
Best time to visit Phalaborwa
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Phalaborwa throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around mid May, Phalaborwa is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.
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 Phalaborwa for general outdoor tourist activities is from early May to early September, with a peak score in the third week of July.
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) | 4.2 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 6.4 | 8.1 | 8.9 | 9.0 | 8.4 | 6.8 | 5.7 | 4.7 | 4.3 |
| Rating | fair | fair | fair | good | ideal | ideal | ideal | ideal | good | good | fair | fair |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4.2 | fair |
| Feb | 4.3 | fair |
| Mar | 5.0 | fair |
| Apr | 6.4 | good |
| May | 8.1 | ideal |
| Jun | 8.9 | ideal |
| Jul | 9.0 | ideal |
| Aug | 8.4 | ideal |
| Sep | 6.8 | good |
| Oct | 5.7 | good |
| Nov | 4.7 | fair |
| Dec | 4.3 | fair |
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 Phalaborwa for hot-weather activities is from early March to early November, with a peak score in the first week of September.
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 Phalaborwa, 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 February (highs near 32°C), the essentials are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. In the cold season around July (highs near 25°C), pack light clothes.
In February, Phalaborwa sees daytime highs around 32°C and nights near 22°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 8 days see rain.
UV index (midday) in Phalaborwa 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 Phalaborwa peaks around January 20 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 20 at about 5 (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) | 14 | 13 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | High | High | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 14 | Extreme |
| Feb | 13 | Extreme |
| Mar | 12 | Extreme |
| Apr | 8 | Very high |
| May | 6 | High |
| Jun | 5 | High |
| Jul | 5 | High |
| Aug | 7 | Very high |
| Sep | 8 | Very high |
| Oct | 10 | Very high |
| Nov | 12 | Extreme |
| Dec | 12 | Extreme |
Average hourly UV index in Phalaborwa
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 January the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 9 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 7 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) | 9 | 8.5 | 8 | 6.5 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7.5 | 8.5 | 8.5 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 7 | 6.5 | 6 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6.5 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | 7 |
| Feb | 8.5 | 6.5 |
| Mar | 8 | 6 |
| Apr | 6.5 | 3.5 |
| May | 5.5 | 0.5 |
| Jun | 4.5 | 0 |
| Jul | 5 | 0 |
| Aug | 6 | 3 |
| Sep | 7 | 4 |
| Oct | 7.5 | 5 |
| Nov | 8.5 | 6 |
| Dec | 8.5 | 6.5 |
Air quality in Phalaborwa 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 Phalaborwa is worst in September — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (January, 7 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) | 7 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 15 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 12 | 9 | 7 |
| Level | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | Good |
| Feb | 8 | Good |
| Mar | 8 | Good |
| Apr | 11 | Good |
| May | 15 | Moderate |
| Jun | 13 | Moderate |
| Jul | 15 | Moderate |
| Aug | 13 | Moderate |
| Sep | 16 | Moderate |
| Oct | 12 | Good |
| Nov | 9 | Good |
| Dec | 7 | Good |
Growing season
Phalaborwa 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. Phalaborwa banks about 4,952 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around February.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 523 | 475 | 500 | 418 | 354 | 275 | 269 | 326 | 389 | 445 | 468 | 511 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 523 |
| Feb | 475 |
| Mar | 500 |
| Apr | 418 |
| May | 354 |
| Jun | 275 |
| Jul | 269 |
| Aug | 326 |
| Sep | 389 |
| Oct | 445 |
| Nov | 468 |
| Dec | 511 |
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.
Phalaborwa receives about 5.0 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 3.7 and 6.1 kWh/m².
The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.7 months, from around Sep 1 to Mar 24. The brightest month is December, averaging about 6.0 kWh/m² (bright).
The dimmest month is June, down near 3.8 kWh/m² — roughly 37% less than the December peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 6.0 | 5.8 | 5.3 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 5.7 | 6.0 |
| Level | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Moderate | Moderate | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6.0 | Bright |
| Feb | 5.8 | Bright |
| Mar | 5.3 | Bright |
| Apr | 4.6 | Bright |
| May | 4.2 | Bright |
| Jun | 3.8 | Moderate |
| Jul | 3.9 | Moderate |
| Aug | 4.6 | Bright |
| Sep | 5.3 | Bright |
| Oct | 5.5 | Bright |
| Nov | 5.7 | Bright |
| Dec | 6.0 | Bright |
Where is Phalaborwa?
Phalaborwa sits at 23.9°S, 31.1°E, 435 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Acornhoek, 72 km away.
Topography around Phalaborwa
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Phalaborwa.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Phalaborwa has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 257 m around an average of 426 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 788 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,179 m.
The land around Phalaborwa is covered by trees (39%) and shrubs (27%) within 3 km, shrubs (64%) within 16 km, and shrubs (65%) and grassland (21%) within 80 km.
South Africa travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / M / N
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 41% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $6,598
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 68%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 43.7
- per 100k, 2022
- Road deaths
- 22.2
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Very high
- EF EPI 602
- 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 Phalaborwa (-23.943°, 31.1411°, elevation 435 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).