Venezuela Braces for Colder Temperatures,โ with January โขPotentially Reaching 14ยฐC
Caracas, Venezuela is experiencing a cooling trend that is expectedโ to continue into the beginningโ of next โyear, according to valdemar Andrade, a hydrometeorological engineer and researcher at the Central University of โVenezuela (UCV).
In an interviewโ with Radio โขUnion, Andrade statedโข that โคCaracas is already registering temperatures below normal for this time of year, and Januaryโค could seeโ minimums as โขlow as โค14ยฐC. Currently, โฃminimum temperatures in โคthe capitalโ average 19.6ยฐC, approximately one degree lower than in October. The UCV weather stationโ recently recorded a November low of โ16ยฐC.
“The trend is that they continue to decline in December andโค January,” โขAndrade โขexplained. He projectsโค the city could be between 14 and 15ยฐC in January,โข mirroring โconditions at the start of this year when Caracas remainedโ below 16ยฐCโฃ for several days.
Maximum temperatures are also decreasing, currently around 28.8ยฐC comparedโ to higher values recorded in โOctober,and are expected to continue fallingโ as the seasonโฃ progresses.
Reducedโข Rainfallโฃ and a โWeaker La Niรฑa
While the La Niรฑa phenomenon typically brings increased rainfallโ and lower temperatures, Andrade noted itsโ influence has been weaker than anticipated this year. “Itโค hasn’t rained what was expected,” he said.
As of Tuesday, Caracas had accumulated only 35 millimeters of rainfallโค in November, substantially below the averageโ of 99 millimeters for โขthe month. This lower rainfall is โalso reflected in the country’sโข rivers, with the โOrinoco and Caronรญ rivers remainingโ at average โฃor below-average levels.
andrade attributes the current cooling primarily to the arrival of remnants ofโฃ cold fronts โfrom the northern hemisphere -โค a common occurrence between the โขend of the year and the beginningโข of the next – โคwhich โฃtypically causes more pronounced temperature drops in โฃthe central region and along the coast. He warned that a new cold front is currently movingโค across the Atlantic and could reach northern Venezuela in the coming days, potentially leading to even colderโค temperatures next week.
A Contrast to 2024
the hydrometeorologist highlighted a key difference from the beginning of 2024, which was markedโฃ by an โunusually warm Atlantic Ocean. This warming โcontributed to โhigher temperatures in Venezuela and triggered widespread forestโข fires, with over 7,000 claims registered in โFebruary alone – more than double the usual average of around 3,000.
This extreme Atlantic โwarming is not present thisโ year, contributing to a cooler environment andโข different conditions than those experiencedโ in recent cycles.