Longyearbyen in Summer
In summer (June, July and August), Longyearbyen sees average daytime highs around 5°C and overnight lows near 2°C, with 89 mm of precipitation over about 22 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Over the season highs climb from about 0°C in early June to 4°C by late August. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.
Summer is Longyearbyen's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Longyearbyen's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 5°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 2°C
- Precipitation
- 89 mm
- 22 wet days
- Avg wind
- 9 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.3
- best season of the year
- Months
- Jun · Jul · Aug
Temperature in Longyearbyen in Summer
Over the season highs climb from about 0°C in early June to 4°C by late August.
A typical summer day in Longyearbyen reaches about 5°C and drops to 2°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is July, the coolest June.
How summer really feels in Longyearbyen
Once humidity and wind are folded in, summer brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 42 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in summer is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Longyearbyen weather by month
How the three summer months (June, July and August) 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 | -11° / -16° | 43 | 8.9 | 10.9 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -12° / -16° | 31 | 7.1 | 9 | 1 | 0.0 |
| Mar | -12° / -17° | 35 | 8.4 | 10.2 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Apr | -9° / -13° | 23 | 6.8 | 8.7 | 19.3 | 0.0 |
| May | -3° / -5° | 21 | 6 | 7.7 | 24 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 2° / 1° | 18 | 5 | 3.7 | 24 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 7° / 4° | 32 | 8.2 | 1.1 | 24 | 0.7 |
| Aug | 5° / 3° | 40 | 9 | 2.2 | 22.8 | 0.3 |
| Sep | 1° / -1° | 45 | 9.8 | 5.3 | 13.7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | -4° / -8° | 41 | 9.1 | 9 | 4.4 | 0.0 |
| Nov | -7° / -12° | 47 | 10.3 | 12.2 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -10° / -14° | 45 | 9.7 | 11.9 | 0 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Longyearbyen gets around 89 mm of rain and snow over 22 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 9 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 24 hours in early June to 18 h 12 min by late August. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Summer
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 4.2 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Longyearbyen?
Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
summer is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Longyearbyen.
What to pack for Longyearbyen in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Longyearbyen sees daytime highs around 5°C and nights near 2°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 22 days see rain.
UV index in Longyearbyen in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Longyearbyen peaks around June 18 at about 2 (moderate) — sun protection is rarely needed. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 0 (low).
The midday index never reaches 3, the level where the WHO starts recommending sun protection.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Level | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0 | Low |
| Feb | 0 | Low |
| Mar | 0 | Low |
| Apr | 1 | Low |
| May | 2 | Low |
| Jun | 2 | Moderate |
| Jul | 2 | Low |
| Aug | 2 | Low |
| Sep | 0 | Low |
| Oct | 0 | Low |
| Nov | 0 | Low |
| Dec | 0 | Low |
Where is Longyearbyen?
Longyearbyen sits at 78.2°N, 15.6°E, 1 m above sea level, in Svalbard and Jan Mayen. The nearest listed city is Alta, 945 km away.
Topography around Longyearbyen
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Longyearbyen.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Longyearbyen has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 485 m around an average of 113 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,061 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,255 m.
The land around Longyearbyen is covered by water (35%), bare terrain (30%) and moss and lichen (27%) within 3 km, bare terrain (31%), water (29%) and moss and lichen (22%) within 16 km, and snow and ice (30%), water (29%) and bare terrain (26%) within 80 km.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Longyearbyen (78.2233°, 15.6469°, elevation 1 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.