Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

lies in the northern part of the temperate climate zone and in the transition zone between

maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prin ...

and continental climate. Because Estonia (and all of Northern Europe) is continuously warmed by maritime air influenced by the heat content of the northern

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, it has a milder climate despite its northern latitude. The

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

causes differences between the climate of coastal and inland areas. Estonia has four seasons of near-equal length. Average temperatures range from on the Baltic islands to inland in July, the warmest month, and from on the Baltic islands to inland in February, the coldest month. Estonia Endla Nature Reserve 07 Forest

The average annual temperature in Estonia is . The climate is also influenced by the

, the North-Atlantic Stream and the

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

Minimum In mathematical analysis, the maxima and minima (the respective plurals of maximum and minimum) of a function, known collectively as extrema (the plural of extremum), are the largest and smallest value of the function, either within a given r ...

, which is an area known for the formation of cyclones and where the average air pressure is lower than in neighbouring areas. Estonia is located in a humid zone in which the amount of precipitation is greater than total evaporation. The average precipitation in 1991–2020 ranged from per year and was heaviest in late summer. There were between 102 and 127 rainy days a year, and average precipitation was most plentiful on the western slopes of the Sakala and

Haanja Haanja ( vro, Haani; german: Hahnshof) is a village in Rõuge Parish, Võru County, in southeastern Estonia. (retrieved 28 July 2021) It's located 16 km south from the town of Võru. Between 1991 and 2017 (until the administrative reform of ...

Uplands.

Temperature

Spring

Spring is usually dry and mild. The weather in April can be the most changeable, in the first half of the month there can sometimes be snowy days but at the same time it is sometimes possible to experience days when the temperature rises above 20 °C. Spring is the warmest inland in southern Estonia and the coolest on the coast. May is the warmest month in spring when the first warm spells arrive and the temperatures can reach 20-30 °C. Thunder season starts in April.

Summer

Summers are mild, warmer in south and east Estonia, colder on the islands. On some days temperatures can reach up to 30-35 °C, but they are usually near 20 °C. The warmest month is July, but the maximum air temperature record was recorded in August at 35,6 °C. Thunderstorms can be commonly seen in the afternoon.

Autumn

Autumn is wet and windy. The first half of September can be warm. Many cyclones come from the southwest and west and bring heavy rains with thunderstorm to Estonia. Some storms can cause

coastal flooding Coastal flooding normally occurs when dry and low-lying land is submerged by seawater. The range of a coastal flooding is a result of the elevation of floodwater that penetrates the inland which is controlled by the topography of the coastal land ...

and winds over 35 m/s. In the coming months, the weather gradually cools down, the share of cloudy days increases. The first snow usually comes in late October or November. Autumn in coastal areas is considerably milder than inland.

Winter

It is colder in the East of Estonia and warmer on the coastal areas. The coldest months are January and February: on some nights low can be -35 °C. The record low is -43.5 °C. Cyclones bring snowstorms. Some times sea effect affects Estonia, bringing more snow.

Wind

Strongest wind was in 1969 in Ruhnu, 48 m/s.

Sunshine

The total annual sunshine is 1829.6 hours. The sunniest month is usually July, the cloudiest month is usually December.

References

{{Europe topic, Climate of

Geography of Estonia