Sunch’ŏn climate — normals and trends
Sunch’ŏn (North Korea) has a hot-summer humid continental, dry winter climate (Dwa) under the Köppen-Geiger classification. Its mean annual temperature is 9.2 °C and it receives 1,331 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 August (23.8 °C on average) and the coldest is January (-8.6 °C). Rainfall peaks in July.
Sunch’ŏn averages 136 frost days, 14 hot days (≥ 30 °C) and 113 rainy days per year.
Sunch’ŏn has warmed by +2.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, or +0.33 °C per decade. This trend is statistically significant.
The number of frost days there went from about 146 to 126 per year over the period.
The hottest day of the period reached 36.8 °C (on 1 August 2018) and the coldest -33.5 °C (on 10 January 1940).
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
Sunch’ŏnSouth Pyongan
- coords
- 39.43°, 125.93°
- period
- 1940–2025 · 86 yrs
Mean daily temperature
9.2°C
Average daily high
14.3°C
Average daily low
4.5°C
Annual rainfall
1,331mm
Sunshine / day
8.6h
Mean relative humidity
71%
Average peak wind
13.6km/h
Seasonal range
32.4°C
Frost days (< 0 °C)
136 d/yr
Hot days (≥ 30 °C)
14 d/yr
Rainy days (≥ 1 mm)
113 d/yr
Annual snowfall
48.6 cm
Average feels-like high
13.0 °C
Average feels-like low
2.5 °C
Average peak gust
33.6 km/h
Tropical nights (≥ 20 °C)
39 d/yr
Solar radiation
14.4 MJ/m²
Has the climate changed?
One stripe per year, 1940 to 2025
+2.8 °C
since 1940
+0.3 °C per decade · r² = 0.66 · p = < 0.001
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
36.8 °C
1 August 2018
Coldest day
-33.5 °C
10 January 1940
Wettest day
187 mm
7 September 1962
Windiest day
44.2 km/h
27 August 2020
Strongest gust
123.5 km/h
27 August 2020
Hottest feels-like
47.0 °C
1 August 2018
Coldest feels-like
-38.1 °C
10 January 1940
Snowiest day
30.9 cm
3 March 1989
Sunniest day
14.5 h
16 June 2007
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 | 0.5 °C | +3.5 °C | 20 mm | +2 mm |
| Feb | 1.0 °C | +0.3 °C | 8 mm | -15 mm |
| Mar | 10.4 °C | +2.8 °C | 15 mm | -25 mm |
| Apr | 16.8 °C | +1.2 °C | 111 mm | +32 mm |
| May | 21.6 °C | +0.1 °C | 155 mm | +55 mm |
| Jun | 26.8 °C | +1.7 °C | 329 mm | +186 mm |
| Jul | 30.1 °C | +2.8 °C | 239 mm | -121 mm |
| Aug | 29.5 °C | +1.7 °C | 360 mm | +75 mm |
| Sep | 26.3 °C | +2.5 °C | 202 mm | +76 mm |
| Oct | 17.9 °C | +0.8 °C | 147 mm | +83 mm |
| Nov | 10.6 °C | +2.5 °C | 33 mm | -28 mm |
| Dec | 1.1 °C | +1.4 °C | 37 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 Sunch’ŏn?
Sunch’ŏn has a hot-summer humid continental, dry winter climate (Köppen Dwa). Over 1940-2025, the average annual temperature is 9.2 °C and it receives 1,331 mm of precipitation per year.
What is the hottest day ever recorded in Sunch’ŏn?
The hottest day measured in Sunch’ŏn between 1940 and 2025 was 1 August 2018, reaching 36.8 °C.
What is the coldest day in Sunch’ŏn?
The coldest day measured in Sunch’ŏn between 1940 and 2025 was 10 January 1940, at -33.5 °C.
Does it snow in Sunch’ŏn?
Yes. Sunch’ŏn gets on average 48.6 cm of snow per year and has around 136 frost days.
Has the climate of Sunch’ŏn warmed?
Yes: Sunch’ŏn warmed by +2.8 °C between 1940 and 2025, a statistically significant trend.
What is the wettest day in Sunch’ŏn?
The wettest day measured in Sunch’ŏn between 1940 and 2025 was 7 September 1962, with 187 mm of rain in 24 hours.
What was the windiest day in Sunch’ŏn?
The windiest day measured in Sunch’ŏn between 1940 and 2025 was 27 August 2020, with winds reaching 44.2 km/h.
What is the warmest month in Sunch’ŏn?
The warmest month in Sunch’ŏn is August (23.8 °C on average); the coldest is January (-8.6 °C).
How much does it rain in Sunch’ŏn?
Sunch’ŏn receives on average 1,331 mm of precipitation per year, spread over about 113 rainy days.
Is it sunny in Sunch’ŏn?
Sunch’ŏn gets on average 8.6 hours of sunshine per day, roughly 3,139 hours per year over 1940-2025.
What is the biggest single-day snowfall in Sunch’ŏn?
The heaviest 24-hour snowfall measured in Sunch’ŏn between 1940 and 2025 was 3 March 1989, with 30.9 cm.
Are there tropical nights in Sunch’ŏn?
Yes: Sunch’ŏn has on average 39 tropical nights per year (temperature staying above 20 °C), over 1940-2025.
What was the most extreme apparent temperature in Sunch’ŏn?
In Sunch’ŏn, between 1940 and 2025, the highest apparent temperature reached 47.0 °C on 1 August 2018, and the lowest was -38.1 °C on 10 January 1940.
Compare Sunch’ŏn with another city
Pick a second city: its normals will be set against these, indicator by indicator.
Nearby cities
The climate around Sunch’ŏn