In July and August, the temperatures are pleasant the sun shines quite often and there is not much rain. Because of their oceanic climate, the Azores experience a delay in the sea getting warm, which affects the air temperature as well, so much so that September is slightly warmer than June, and temperature-wise September is still a summer month, even though the rains become a bit more frequent. The best time to visit the Azores is summer, from July to August, since it is the warmest and sunniest time of the year. Hurricane Lorenzo at the beginning of October 2019. In January 2016, in an absolutely anomalous period, hurricane Alex affected the islands, after having weakened to a tropical storm however, it brought heavy rains and strong winds. Hurricane Gordon, which mainly affected the island of Santa Maria on September 20, 2006, with gusts at 130 kph (80 mph).Īnother hurricane named Gordon affected the island of Santa Maria in August 2012. In September 1992, two hurricanes, Bonnie and Charley, passed one after the other within a few days. Hurricane Emmy at the beginning of September 1976. Some hurricanes that hit the archipelago were:Īt the beginning of September 1899, the "Great Bahamas" hurricane, which had hit the Caribbean in August, struck the island of São Miguel. The Azores are almost always reached in September or October. Generally, hurricanes move northeast after hitting the Caribbean, but sometimes they can come directly from the south, from the Cape Verde area.
Occasionally, the Azores islands can be affected by hurricanes, the tropical cyclones of the Atlantic, although they generally arrive weakened because they have to move into a sea that is not very warm. Here is the average precipitation of Santa Cruz, on the island of Flores. Owing to the abundance of rainfall, the environment is green and blossoming flowers paint the landscape mainly in spring, and they also gave the name to the westernmost and very rainy island of Flores ("flowers"). In addition, sometimes there can be wind storms in the period from November to March. In fact, in autumn and winter, the rains are frequent, and on the north-western islands, they are also abundant. the Azores High) got its name from the Azores, interestingly enough however, the weather on these islands is not always sunny. The famous anticyclone (high pressure area) that brings fine weather to Western Europe and the Mediterranean (i.e. Ponta Delgada - Average temperatures (1991-2020) Month Here are the average temperatures of Ponta Delgada. However, cold records on the coasts are around 3/4 ☌ (37/39 ☏) in most of the islands, and 2 ☌ (35.5 ☏) in Flores (the latter recorded in January 1985). On the other hand, temperatures rarely drop below 7/8 ☌ (45/46 ☏) in winter. In August 20, at Lajes airport, in the north of the island of Terceira, the temperature reached 31.5 ☌ (88.5 ☏), while in September 1985, at the Pico Island airport, it reached 32 ☌ (89.5 ☏). The highest records on the Azores are not impressive, being around 30 ☌ (86 ☏). In winter, cold air comes from Canada, after having crossed the Atlantic Ocean for a long distance, and mainly affects the northwesternmost islands (Flores and Corvo). Given that they are very far from the continents (and from the Pole), the Azores do not experience real heat waves in summer or cold waves in winter.
The temperature varies incrementally from one month to the other, and highs exceed 20 ☌ (68 ☏) only from June to October. The winter temperatures range from 12/13 ☌ (53/55 ☏) at night to 17/18 ☌ (63/64 ☏) during the day, while in summer, they range from 17/18 ☌ (63/64 ☏) at night to 24/26 ☌ (75/79 ☏) during the day. However, the influence of the ocean makes the climate mild by comparison, especially in the summer, when the temperature is lower than on the coasts and islands of the Mediterranean. The archipelago, a Portuguese autonomous region, is located in the Atlantic Ocean at the same latitude as the Mediterranean Sea. The climate of the Azores Islands is subtropical oceanic, pleasantly warm in summer yet cool or mild for many months therefore, they are not a tropical paradise.