Tropical rainforest climate

Worldwide zones of Tropical rainforest climate (Af).

A tropical rainforest climate, also known as an equatorial climate, is a tropical climate usually (but not always) found along the equator. Regions with this climate typically feature tropical rainforests, and it is designated by the Köppen climate classification as "Af."

Description

Tropical rainforests are a type of tropical climate in which there is no dry season – all months have mean precipitation values of at least 60 mm (2.36 inches). Tropical rainforest climates have no pronounced summer or winter; it is typically hot and wet throughout the year and rainfall is both heavy and frequent. One day in an equatorial climate can be very similar to the next, while the change in temperature between day and night may be larger than the average change in temperature between "summer" and "winter".

Distribution

Upland rainforest in Borneo. Sabah, Malaysia

A tropical rainforest climate is usually found at latitudes within five degrees North and south of the equator, which are dominated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The climate is most commonly found in Southeast Asia, Central Africa and South America. However, tropical microclimates are found in many other regions (e.g. far North Queensland), while not everywhere along the equatorial region there is a tropical rainforest climate (see also Equatorial dry zone).

Some of the places that have this climate are indeed uniformly and monotonously wet throughout the year (e.g., the northwest Pacific coast of South and Central America, from Ecuador to Costa Rica, see for instance, Andagoya, Colombia), but in many cases the period of higher sun and longer days is distinctly driest (as at Palembang, Indonesia) or the time of lower sun and shorter days may have more rain (as at Sitiawan, Malaysia).

Additionally, while tropical rainforest climates are typically located near the equator (hence the alternate name “equatorial climate”), there are a number of instances where the climate is found some distance away from the equator. For instance, Santos, Brazil and Fort Lauderdale, USA are not only far removed from the equator, but are actually located just outside the tropics. Yet both of these cities feature a tropical rainforest climate, albeit with noticeably cooler and warmer periods of the year.

Tropical rainforests is a type of tropical climate in which there is no dry season – all months have mean precipitation values of at least 60 mm (2.36 inches). Tropical rainforest climates have no pronounced summer or winter; it is typically hot and wet throughout the year and rainfall is both heavy and frequent. One day in an equatorial climate can be very similar to the next, while the change in temperature between day and night may be larger than the average change in temperature between "summer" and "winter".

Notable cities with Tropical rainforest climates

Africa

• Entebbe, Uganda
• Mbandaka, DR Congo
• Moroni, Comoros

Americas

• Belém, Brazil
• Bluefields, Nicaragua
• Bocas Town, Panama
• Hilo, United States
• Fort Lauderdale, United States
• Georgetown, Guyana
• Iquitos, Peru
• Leticia, Colombia
• Medellín, Colombia
• Paramaribo, Suriname
• Pucallpa, Peru
• Quibdó, Colombia
• Rio Branco, Brazil
• Salvador, Brazil
• San Carlos del Zulia, Venezuela

Asia/Pacific

• Apia, Samoa
• Davao City, Philippines
• Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines
• Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
• Banjarmasin, Indonesia
• Biak, Indonesia
• Colombo, Sri Lanka
• George Town, Malaysia
• Innisfail, Australia
• Johor Bahru, Malaysia
• Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
• Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Kuching, Malaysia
• Medan, Indonesia
• Padang, Indonesia
• Palembang, Indonesia
• Pekanbaru, Indonesia
• Singapore
• Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, Sri Lanka
• Tabubil, Papua New Guinea

Examples

Apia, Samoa
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     450   30 23     380   29 24     350   30 23     250   30 23     260   29 23     120   29 23     80   29 23     80   28 23     130   28 23     170   29 23     260   30 23     370   29 23 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: [1]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     18   86 73     15   84 75     14   86 73     9.8   86 73     10   84 73     4.7   84 73     3.1   84 73     3.1   82 73     5.1   82 73     6.7   84 73     10   86 73     15   84 73 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Paramaribo, Suriname
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     200   30 22     140   30 22     150   30 22     210   31 22     290   30 23     290   31 22     230   31 22     170   32 23     90   32 23     90   33 23     120   32 23     180   30 22 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: [2]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     7.9   86 72     5.5   86 72     5.9   86 72     8.3   88 72     11   86 73     11   88 72     9.1   88 72     6.7   90 73     3.5   90 73     3.5   91 73     4.7   90 73     7.1   86 72 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Mbandaka, DR Congo
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     80   31 19     100   32 20     150   32 20     140   31 20     130   31 20     110   30 19     100   30 17     100   29 17     200   30 19     210   30 19     190   30 19     120   30 19 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: [3]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.1   88 66     3.9   90 68     5.9   90 68     5.5   88 68     5.1   88 68     4.3   86 66     3.9   86 63     3.9   84 63     7.9   86 66     8.3   86 66     7.5   86 66     4.7   86 66 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Biak, Indonesia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     250   29 25     240   28 25     250   29 25     200   29 25     250   29 25     230   29 25     250   28 25     240   29 25     220   29 25     180   29 25     190   30 25     230   29 25 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: [4]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     9.8   84 77     9.4   82 77     9.8   84 77     7.9   84 77     9.8   84 77     9.1   84 77     9.8   82 77     9.4   84 77     8.7   84 77     7.1   84 77     7.5   86 77     9.1   84 77 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Kuching, Malaysia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     466   30 23     445   29 23     465   30 23     251   32 23     347   33 24     310   32 23     184   31 23     326   32 23     208   32 23     307   32 23     482   32 24     516   30 23 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: Monthly Statistical Bulletin Sarawak
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     18   87 73     18   84 74     18   87 73     9.9   90 74     14   91 74     12   89 73     7.2   88 74     13   89 73     8.2   90 74     12   89 74     19   89 74     20   87 74 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Quibdó, Colombia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     579   30 23     505   30 23     526   30 23     655   31 23     776   31 23     762   31 23     803   31 23     852   31 23     702   31 23     654   30 23     728   30 23     589   30 23 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: [5]
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     23   86 73     20   86 74     21   87 74     26   87 74     31   88 74     30   88 73     32   88 73     34   88 73     28   87 73     26   87 73     29   86 73     23   85 73 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

See also

• Tropics
• Köppen climate classification