Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

and its metropolitan area has a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

: ''Csa'') which transitions to a cold

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...

(''BSk''). According to the Troll-Paffen climate classification, Madrid has ''warm-temperate subtropical'' climate (''Warmgemäßigt-subtropisches Zonenklima'') and according to the Siegmund/Frankenberg climate classification, Madrid has a subtropical climate. However, the most widespread climate classification is that Madrid presents a climate of transition between the

(

: ''Csa'') and the cold

(''BSk''), with hot summers and relatively cool winters with somewhat frequent frosts (15 days have lows under on average) and occasional snowfalls, with 3-4 snowy days on average.

Seasons

Spring

Late

Spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a ...

, in the months of

May May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the third of seven months to have a length of 31 days. May is a month of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Therefore, May ...

and

June June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the second of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the third of five months to have a length of less than 31 days. June contains the summer solstice in ...

, is witness to the peak of polinization of

Gramineae Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns and ...

, the main culprit behind

rhinitis Rhinitis, also known as coryza, is irritation and inflammation of the mucous membrane inside the nose. Common symptoms are a stuffy nose, runny nose, sneezing, and post-nasal drip. The inflammation is caused by viruses, bacteria, irritants o ...

and bronchial

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...

in Madrid. Years with high concentrations have proven a public health issue, with punctual cases of asthma epidemics among the inhabitants of Madrid in the aforementioned months.

Sunshine and UV index

Sunshine duration Sunshine duration or sunshine hours is a climatological indicator, measuring duration of sunshine in given period (usually, a day or a year) for a given location on Earth, typically expressed as an averaged value over several years. It is a gene ...

is 2,769 hours per year, from 124 (4 hours per day in average) in December to 359 (above 11.6 hours per day in average) in July. This is one of the largest number of sunshine duration hours in Europe and this is a bit above average for the southern half of Europe because in this part of the continent, sunshine duration varies from about 2,000 to about 3,000 hours per year. However, this is 70% larger value than in northern half of Europe, where sunshine duration is around 1500 hours per year. In winter Madrid has about three times more sun duration than in the northern half of Europe.

has the second highest UV value of

continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...

after

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

and

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. The values are close to that of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

ultraviolet radiation Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation i ...

suffers little interference from other geographic variables. Although values are still average, which is not as risky as almost the entire continent, except the afternoons of the warmer months, where exposure should be reduced. The amount varies from 2 between November to January to 9 between June and July.

Precipitation

Madrid has on average only 63 precipitation days a year, therein average several rainy days per month (≥ 1 mm), ranging from 2 days in July and August to 8 days in May. The average annual precipitation is less than 436 mm (17.87 inches), ranging from 10 mm (0.35 inch) in August to 56 mm in November and December.

Humidity

Average

relative humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity depe ...

is 57%, ranging from 38% in July to 74% in December.

Snow

Snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

falls are occasional, happening only a few days per year. In January 1941 8 snow days were recorded, the most for any month. From 7 January to 10 January 2021, Madrid received the most snow in its recorded history; Spain's meteorological agency

AEMET The State Meteorological Agency (, AEMET) is a state agency of the Government of Spain responsible for providing weather forecast, warnings of hazardous weather and assisting the administrations in such matters. The AEMET is part of the Secretaria ...

reported between of accumulated snow at its

weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...

s within the city.

Temperature extremes

The highest temperature recorded during the day at the Retiro station is on both 28 June 2019, 14 August 2021, and 14 July 2022. Higher maximum temperatures have been recorded in other stations. The August 1933 reported record had the average maximum temperature during the day at . The coldest temperature recorded was at night on 16 January 1945."Valores Extremos for Madrid" (pdf)www version
– Agencia Estatal de Meteorología

Daylight

Madrid enjoys one of the most optimal number of hours of daylight in Europe. Days in winter are not as short as in the northern part of the continent, the average hours of daylight in December, January and February is 10 hours (for comparison:

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

- about 8 hours).

Climatic data for Madrid area

References

{{Reflist

Geography of Madrid