Climate

Ankara has a continental climate, with cold, snowy winters due to its elevation and inland location, and hot, dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn. Under Köppen's climate classification, Ankara features a semi-arid climate. Because of Ankara's high altitude and its dry summers, nightly temperatures in the summer months are cool. Ankara's annual average precipitation is fairly low at 408 millimetres (16 in), nevertheless precipitation can be observed throughout the year. Monthly mean temperatures range from 0.3 °C (32.5 °F) in January to 23.5 °C (74.3 °F) in July, with an annual mean of 11.7 °C (53.1 °F).

Climate data for Ankara (1960–2012) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 16.6 (61.9) 19.9 (67.8) 26.4 (79.5) 30.6 (87.1) 33.0 (91.4) 37.0 (98.6) 41.0 (105.8) 40.4 (104.7) 36.0 (96.8) 32.2 (90) 24.4 (75.9) 19.8 (67.6) 41.0 (105.8) Average high °C (°F) 4.3 (39.7) 6.4 (43.5) 11.7 (53.1) 17.2 (63) 22.2 (72) 26.6 (79.9) 30.2 (86.4) 30.2 (86.4) 26.0 (78.8) 19.9 (67.8) 12.8 (55) 6.6 (43.9) 17.8 (64) Average low °C (°F) −3.0 (26.6) −2.2 (28) 1.0 (33.8) 5.7 (42.3) 9.7 (49.5) 13.0 (55.4) 16.0 (60.8) 16.0 (60.8) 11.9 (53.4) 7.4 (45.3) 2.5 (36.5) −0.6 (30.9) 6.5 (43.7) Record low °C (°F) −21.2 (−6.2) −21.5 (−6.7) −19.2 (−2.6) −6.7 (19.9) −1.6 (29.1) 4.7 (40.5) 6.8 (44.2) 6.3 (43.3) 2.5 (36.5) −3.4 (25.9) −10.5 (13.1) −17.2 (1) −21.5 (−6.7) Precipitation mm (inches) 41.8 (1.646) 36.9 (1.453) 38.7 (1.524) 49.0 (1.929) 51.2 (2.016) 35.4 (1.394) 14.5 (0.571) 10.9 (0.429) 18.5 (0.728) 30.2 (1.189) 33.9 (1.335) 46.9 (1.846) 407.9 (16.059) Avg. precipitation days 11.7 11.0 10.9 12.0 12.5 8.6 3.8 2.8 3.8 7.1 8.6 11.8 104.6 Mean monthly sunshine hours 77.5 98.9 161.2 189.0 260.4 306.0 350.3 328.6 276.0 198.4 132.0 71.3 2,449.6 Source: Turkish State Meteorological Service