Zambezi, Zambia

This article is about the town. For the river, see Zambezi River. For other uses, see Zambezi (disambiguation).
Zambezi
Town
Zambezi is located in Zambia
Zambezi
Zambezi
Location in Zambia
Coordinates: 13°33′00″S 23°07′00″E / 13.55000°S 23.11667°E / -13.55000; 23.11667
Country Zambia
ProvinceNorth-Western Province
DistrictZambezi District
Time zoneUTC+2 (CAT)
Location of Zambezi in Zambia
Location of Zambezi in Zambia

Zambezi is a town in the North-Western Province of Zambia, lying on the Zambezi River, west of Kabompo. It is at the western end of the M8 road. It is known for the palaces of the chiefs of the Lunda and Lovale people. Until about 1966 it was called Balovale after the dominant chief (and his village within the town is still known by that name) but the name was changed in an attempt to defuse tensions between the main groups and the government of the newly independent country.

The Chinyingi Suspension Bridge spans the river just to the north-west of the town.

Climate

Zambezi features a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cwa)[1] with distinct wet and dry seasons. The hottest period of the year is from September to November. Winters are cooler, with warm days and cold nights. The wet season, from October to March, experiences significant rainfall. The dry season, from April to October, is marked by minimal precipitation.[2]

Climate data for Zambezi (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1961–2020)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 35.6
(96.1) 		35.3
(95.5) 		34.6
(94.3) 		34.7
(94.5) 		34.5
(94.1) 		32.4
(90.3) 		33.0
(91.4) 		39.2
(102.6) 		40.1
(104.2) 		41.0
(105.8) 		37.6
(99.7) 		36.5
(97.7) 		41.0
(105.8)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 29.4
(84.9) 		29.5
(85.1) 		29.9
(85.8) 		30.3
(86.5) 		29.4
(84.9) 		27.6
(81.7) 		27.5
(81.5) 		31.0
(87.8) 		34.2
(93.6) 		34.4
(93.9) 		31.3
(88.3) 		29.6
(85.3) 		30.3
(86.5)
Daily mean °C (°F) 23.8
(74.8) 		23.7
(74.7) 		23.7
(74.7) 		22.6
(72.7) 		19.7
(67.5) 		17.3
(63.1) 		17.0
(62.6) 		20.3
(68.5) 		24.2
(75.6) 		25.8
(78.4) 		24.6
(76.3) 		23.9
(75.0) 		22.2
(72.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 18.1
(64.6) 		17.9
(64.2) 		17.5
(63.5) 		14.8
(58.6) 		10.0
(50.0) 		6.9
(44.4) 		6.4
(43.5) 		9.5
(49.1) 		14.1
(57.4) 		17.1
(62.8) 		17.9
(64.2) 		18.2
(64.8) 		14.0
(57.2)
Record low °C (°F) 9.2
(48.6) 		12.3
(54.1) 		11.0
(51.8) 		6.5
(43.7) 		2.4
(36.3) 		−2.2
(28.0) 		−2.0
(28.4) 		1.4
(34.5) 		6.0
(42.8) 		8.6
(47.5) 		10.2
(50.4) 		9.2
(48.6) 		−2.2
(28.0)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 235.9
(9.29) 		191.7
(7.55) 		159.0
(6.26) 		38.8
(1.53) 		2.4
(0.09) 		0.8
(0.03) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.4
(0.02) 		4.8
(0.19) 		75.1
(2.96) 		140.9
(5.55) 		218.1
(8.59) 		1,067.9
(42.04)
Average relative humidity (%) 78.1 78.9 77.4 68.9 62.2 58.1 51.9 45.7 40.5 56.6 65.1 75.5 63.2
Mean monthly sunshine hours 170.5 156.8 195.3 255.0 297.6 291.0 306.9 303.8 273.0 248.0 189.0 167.4 2,854.3
Source: NOAA (humidity and sun 1961–1990)[2][3]

References

  1. ^ "Table 1 Overview of the Köppen-Geiger climate classes including the defining criteria". Nature: Scientific Data. 23 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b "World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Zambezi". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  3. ^ "Zambezi MET Climate Normals 1961–1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
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