Qilian climate — normals and trends
Qilian (China) has a tundra climate (ET) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is -5.1 °C and it receives 742 mm of precipitation per year.
These figures are normals computed over 86 complete calendar years, from 1940 to 2025, using ERA5 reanalysis data from the Copernicus programme.
The warmest month is July (8.2 °C on average) and the coldest is January (-18.1 °C). Rainfall peaks in July.
Qilian averages 283 frost days, 0 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 139 rainy days per year.
Qilian has warmed by +0.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.10 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The hottest day of the period reached 22.2 °C (on 29 July 2010) and the coldest -41.3 °C (on 7 January 1942).
Data from ERA5 reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Change Service), redistributed under a CC-BY 4.0 licence. Normals are recomputed whenever the archive is updated.
Climate normals · ERA5
QilianQinghai
- coords
- 38.18°, 100.24°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
-5.1°C
Average daily high
1.3°C
Average daily low
-11.5°C
Annual rainfall
742mm
Sunshine / day
10.0h
Mean relative humidity
70%
Average peak wind
7.5km/h
Seasonal range
26.3°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
283 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
0 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
139 d/yr
Annual snowfall
171.7 cm
Average feels-like high
-1.2 °C
Average feels-like low
-15.4 °C
Average peak gust
29.1 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
0 d/yr
Solar radiation
18.4 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+0.9 °C
since 1940
+0.1 °C per decade · r² = 0.06 · p = 0.030
Trend fitted by linear regression (ordinary least squares) on annual means. A trend is shown only when it is statistically significant (p < 0.05).
A climograph overlays rainfall (bars) and temperature (line): the standard reading in climatology, where you can see at a glance whether the warm season is also the dry one.
Records for the period
Hottest day
22.2 °C
29 July 2010
Coldest day
-41.3 °C
7 January 1942
Wettest day
50 mm
17 July 1946
Windiest day
20.3 km/h
12 February 2022
Strongest gust
80.3 km/h
29 November 1998
Hottest feels-like
22.9 °C
2 August 1999
Coldest feels-like
-46.2 °C
7 January 1942
Snowiest day
17.6 cm
11 September 2005
Sunniest day
14.4 h
30 June 1945
Normals computed over complete calendar years 1940–2025.
A specific year
Pick a year and see how it compares to normal — warmer, drier or more extreme than usual?
Across the whole year
Month by month
| High | vs. normal | Precipitation | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | -7.5 °C | +2.5 °C | 8 mm | +3 mm |
| Feb | -7.7 °C | +0.7 °C | 9 mm | -2 mm |
| Mar | -4.6 °C | +0.2 °C | 22 mm | +1 mm |
| Apr | 4.4 °C | +4.0 °C | 41 mm | +3 mm |
| May | 9.0 °C | +2.5 °C | 60 mm | -16 mm |
| Jun | 11.4 °C | +0.7 °C | 131 mm | +8 mm |
| Jul | 15.3 °C | +2.3 °C | 159 mm | -1 mm |
| Aug | 12.9 °C | +0.2 °C | 198 mm | +45 mm |
| Sep | 11.2 °C | +2.9 °C | 81 mm | -26 mm |
| Oct | 2.2 °C | +0.8 °C | 59 mm | +22 mm |
| Nov | -3.3 °C | +2.2 °C | 9 mm | +1 mm |
| Dec | -5.6 °C | +3.5 °C | 10 mm | +7 mm |
The year's extremes
What was the weather like that day?
Your birthday, a wedding, a memorable trip: discover the actual weather for any date since 1940.
Frequently asked questions
What is the climate of Qilian?
Qilian has a tundra climate (Köppen ET). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is -5.1 °C and it receives 742 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Qilian?
The hottest day measured in Qilian between 1940 and 2025 was 29 July 2010, reaching 22.2 °C.
What is the coldest day in Qilian?
The coldest day measured in Qilian between 1940 and 2025 was 7 January 1942, at -41.3 °C.
Does it snow in Qilian?
Yes. Qilian gets on average 171.7 cm of snow per year and has around 283 frost days.
Has the climate of Qilian warmed?
Yes: Qilian warmed by +0.9 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Qilian?
The wettest day measured in Qilian between 1940 and 2025 was 17 July 1946, with 50 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Qilian?
The windiest day measured in Qilian between 1940 and 2025 was 12 February 2022, with winds reaching 20.3 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Qilian?
The warmest month in Qilian is July (8.2 °C on average); the coldest is January (-18.1 °C).
How much does it rain in Qilian?
Qilian receives on average 742 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 139 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Qilian?
Qilian gets on average 10.0 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,650 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Qilian?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Qilian between 1940 and 2025 was 11 September 2005, with 17.6 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Qilian?
Almost never: tropical nights (temperature staying above 20 °C) are virtually non-existent in Qilian.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Qilian?
In Qilian, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 22.9 °C on 2 August 1999, and the lowest was -46.2 °C on 7 January 1942.
Compare Qilian with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Qilian