Choma weather in December

In December, Choma sees average daytime highs of 27°C and overnight lows near 18°C, with 199 mm of rain across 22.8 wet days and about 13 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 27°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in December, and the air most often feels humid.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 54 min at the start of December to 13 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Choma's 11th-clearest and 10th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Choma's year-round climate.

Daytime high
27°
4th warmest
Overnight low
18°
10th coldest
Rainfall
199 mm
22.8 wet days
Daylight
13 hours
5:38 AM – 6:38 PM
Cloud cover
78%
11th clearest
Wind
9 km/h
10th windiest
Solar energy
5.62 kWh/m²
Travel score
4.5
out of 10

Choma is human settlement in Zambia.

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 27°C through the month.

A typical December day in Choma reaches about 27°C in the afternoon and slips back to 18°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 23°C and 29°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 2°C cooler than November and on par with January.

15°20°25°30°35°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
12718
22718
32718
42718
52718
62718
72718
82718
92718
102718
112718
122718
132618
142618
152618
162618
172618
182618
192618
202618
212618
222618
232618
242618
252618
262618
272618
282618
292618
302618
312618

Choma weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 4th-warmest and 2nd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 18°22224.312.94.3
Feb26° / 18°17521.112.64.5
Mar26° / 17°12517.612.15.5
Apr25° / 15°306.811.67.6
May24° / 12°4111.29.1
Jun22° / 10°10.3118.9
Jul22° / 10.411.18.9
Aug25° / 12°0011.49.4
Sep29° / 15°20.411.97.8
Oct30° / 18°153.212.46.0
Nov29° / 19°9613.812.85.0
Dec27° / 18°19922.8134.5

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 13% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 9% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 78%. Skies tend to cloud over as the month goes on.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13466
23367
33169
43169
52971
62872
72674
82575
92476
102377
112179
122080
131981
141882
151882
161882
171882
181882
191981
201882
211882
221882
231981
241882
251882
261882
271981
282080
292080
302080
312080

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitation

Choma gets around 199 mm of rain over 22.8 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 73% and peaks near 79% on the wettest days. The odds climb toward the end of the month.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
160
261
362
463
564
665
766
868
970
1071
1172
1274
1375
1476
1576
1677
1777
1877
1977
2078
2178
2278
2379
2479
2579
2679
2779
2878
2978
3078
3177

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, December lands in the humid band about 47% of days. Sticky, muggy-or-worse air turns up on roughly 42% of them.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)
19175519
28175520
38165521
47165423
56155524
66155326
75145427
85135329
94135132
104125034
113115036
123104938
13294840
14284842
15274744
16274745
17264647
18254548
19154449
20144451
21144352
22144253
23134254
24134254
25134155
26134155
27134155
28134155
29134155
30134155
31134155

Wind in December

Winds average 9 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 9 km/h on the calmest days to 10 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
110calm
210calm
310calm
410calm
510calm
610calm
79calm
89calm
99calm
109calm
119calm
129calm
139calm
149calm
159calm
169calm
179calm
189calm
199calm
209calm
219calm
229calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
269calm
279calm
289calm
299calm
309calm
319calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 54 min at the start of December to 13 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 5:34 AM to 5:46 AM, and sunset from 6:30 PM to 6:45 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.95:346:30
212.95:346:30
312.95:346:31
413.05:346:31
513.05:356:32
613.05:356:33
713.05:356:33
813.05:366:34
913.05:366:34
1013.05:366:35
1113.05:366:35
1213.05:376:36
1313.05:376:37
1413.05:386:37
1513.05:386:38
1613.05:386:38
1713.05:396:39
1813.05:396:39
1913.05:406:40
2013.05:406:40
2113.05:406:41
2213.05:416:41
2313.05:416:42
2413.05:426:42
2513.05:426:42
2613.05:436:43
2713.05:436:43
2813.05:446:44
2913.05:446:44
3013.05:456:45
3113.05:466:45

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 5.62 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.71 kWh/m² to a high of 7.24 kWh/m² in October across the year — December's 5.62 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
16.0Bright
26.0Bright
35.9Bright
45.9Bright
55.9Bright
65.8Bright
75.8Bright
85.8Bright
95.7Bright
105.7Bright
115.7Bright
125.6Bright
135.6Bright
145.6Bright
155.6Bright
165.6Bright
175.5Bright
185.5Bright
195.5Bright
205.5Bright
215.5Bright
225.5Bright
235.5Bright
245.5Bright
255.5Bright
265.5Bright
275.5Bright
285.5Bright
295.5Bright
305.5Bright
315.5Bright
Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Choma

In seasonPeak

In December, Choma sits inside its monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Choma's monsoon runs December–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

Monsoon
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is December a good time to visit Choma?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

4.5
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
4.5
Beach & pool
10th-best month of the year

December is a reasonable time to visit Choma for sightseeing.

What to pack for Choma in December

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

In December, Choma sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 18°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 23 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothessun protection

UV index in Choma in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Choma peaks around January 19 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 8 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeJan 19UV 16Jun 23UV 8
UV index (midday)Level
Jan17Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar14Extreme
Apr11Extreme
May10Very high
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep11Extreme
Oct12Extreme
Nov14Extreme
Dec13Extreme

Air quality in Choma in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Choma is worst in September — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.5× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodSep 1724 µg/m³Dec 227 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb8Good
Mar8Good
Apr7Good
May8Good
Jun8Good
Jul11Good
Aug18Moderate
Sep24Moderate
Oct19Moderate
Nov10Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Choma?

Choma sits at 16.8°S, 27.0°E, 1,317 m above sea level, in Zambia. The nearest listed city is Kalomo, 59 km away.

SinazongweMonzeNamwalaMazabukaItezhi-TezhiLivingstone

Topography around Choma

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Choma has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 65 m around an average of 1,304 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 190 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 906 m.

The land around Choma is covered by grassland (40%) and artificial surfaces (37%) within 3 km, grassland (43%) and trees (23%) within 16 km, and grassland (29%), trees (24%) and cropland (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
65 m
16 km
190 m
80 km
906 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
December weather nearby: Kalomo 59 km · Maamba 64 km · Sinazongwe 71 km · Monze 79 km · Namwala 131 km · Mazabuka 133 km · Itezhi-Tezhi 156 km · Livingstone 166 km

Zambia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / D / G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 30% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$1,318
2025
Happiness
4.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
5.2
per 100k, 2015
Road deaths
20.5
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 573
Religion
Protestant 75%Roman Catholic 20%other 3%none 2%

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 Choma (-16.8089°, 26.9875°, elevation 1,317 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).