Global and Local Winds in Brazil

Location and Global Wind

Brazil's geographic location has it in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, stretching from just over 30S to about 5N and roughly 35W to 73W.  The behemoth thus has the pleasure of entertaining Hadley Cells in both the North and Southern hemisphere, but mostly south.  Easterly trade winds associated with a subtropical high blow from the southeast providing a fairly moderate climate for much of the country.   The southern portion of the country has the good fortune of being on the boarder between the Hadley and Ferrel Cells.  Westerly winds originating in higher southern latitudes cool the region and occasionally bring dusting's of snow to higher elevations.  With the equator crossing through the heart of the Amazon region to the north, low pressure doldrums persist bringing incredibly stable temperatures year round. 

Global Wind and Weather & Map

Local Winds

The mountainous region is located along the east coast beginning in the south and stretches northeastward up the coast. Of the five wind types, mountain and valley winds Foehn or Chinook wind, Katabatic winds, Santa Ana winds, the dry central southern region does experience Foehn winds. 
There are at least two local types of wind in Brazil.  The Abrolhos is a squall wind that happens during winter near 18S and typically happens when an Antarctic cold front reaches warm southeast trades that have aquired a boatload of moisture over the Brazilian current, which flows southwest begging around 10S.  The second type is a Minuano that occurs much further South.  These take place when very High Pressure is to the North and cold polar fronts from the southwest of the continent meet warm stationary humid air.

Typical Weather and Tourism in Brazil

Weather on the Winter Solstice

June 21st is the winter solstice since almost all of Brazil is in the Southern Hemisphere.  However just north of the Amazon there is a thin slice of the country that is in the Northern Hemisphere, in which case Dec 21st would be the Winter Solstice.  Temperatures in this area stay on average 79F year round. There is very little fluctuation.  However, for the southern hemisphere Brazil is a different story.

The average maximum temperature in June is 88F found in the city of Manus, only 180 nm south of the equator or about 3 degrees.  It gets colder as you travel south on this day.  Go about 1,400nm south of the equator to the city of San Paulo and you will find an average minimum temperature of 56F.  It can get even colder in the higher elevations of the south, and on the rare occasion it snows there. But for the rest of the country, you'll find rain on this day.

Weather on the Summer Solstice

The summer solstice occurs in the southern hemisphere on December 21st and June 21st for that tiny Amazonian area in the north of the territory.  The maximum temperature during December is 88F in Manus again.  The temperature never seems to change there.  The average minimum temperature is in Sao Paulo again, but warmer, at 65 F.  We would find a lot of rain in the Sao Paulo this time of year. Definitely don't spend the Christmas/New Years holiday there. 

Weather on the Spring Equinox

September 23rd  in Brazil is the Spring Equinox for the majority of the country.  The average maximum temperature is found in our now familiar river town, Manus, once again.  A steady 92F keeps that city hoping.  The average minimum temperature on this day is back in Sao Paulo at 58F.  Going to find rain on this day for sure.  Brazil loves rain like it loves it's plastic surgery. 

Weather on the Autumn Equinox

March 20th, just 72 hours following my favorite holiday, that being St. Patrick's Day.  Will the clouds turn into green shamrocks precipitating green beer on this day in Brazil?  Let's find out. The average maximum temperature is in Manaus at a comfortable 88F.  This could lead to late afternoon beerecipitation.  But what's going on in the south? The average minimum temperature is in Sao Paulo at 67.  Now that's good St. Patrick's day weather.  Rain is the primary form of precipitation on the Autumn Equinox, just enough to rehydrate everyone from the festivities.

Travel Agent Advice

I would recommend travel just after the Autumn Equinox.  Summer is coming to a close, temperatures are moderate for most of the country ranging in the 70s to 80s F.  In some parts of the country it may be a bit cool to swim, but you will find excellent opportunities for hiking and enjoying the outdoors.

Severe weather in the country is nearly non-existent in March.  However, March is the prime month for hurricanes in the South Atlantic, as it is the month where the water is the warmest.  Hurricanes' are very, very rare in the Sout Atlantic, especially along the east coast of the country, but it has happened.  In 2004, a category 2 hurricane, Catarina struck the state of Santa Catarina. 

Image source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Panorama_Ibirapuera.jpg/1000px-Panorama_Ibirapuera.jpg

More than just soccer, carnival, and bikini's - Brazil, relax -

take a walk in the park.

 Temperature Source: http://www.gate1travel.com/south-america-travel/weather/Brazil-weather.htm

Temperature Controls in the city of Brasilia in Brazil

Image from: https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5015/5441482134_b04e1aab7f_b.jpg

Capital City: Brasilia 15.7989° S, 47.8667° W

The city's warmest month is September with an average monthly temperature of 71.1 F.
The coldest month is July with an average monthly temperature of  64.9 F

Based on the information above the annual range of temperature for Brasilia is 6.2 F

Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bras%C3%ADlia

Geographic Location

Elevation is one temperature control that has a major impact on Brasilia's regional temperature. At an elevation of 3,845ft and at 15.7989 South, the city has a very moderate tropical climate. The higher elevation keeps the city cooler than it otherwise would be at sea level for this latitude.

One temperature control that does not impact Brasilia are ocean currents.  The city is approximately 765 miles from the coast of the South Atlantic Ocean.  Thus, cool water traveling upward along Brazil's coastline from the south does not have an impact on the city's regional temperature.

Temperature, Climate and the Future

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report called: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability.  In this report, the general consensus for the northern part of Brazil is that it will get drier and the southern highlands will become wetter.  The report also states:  

There is medium confidence that droughts will intensify along the 21st century in some seasons and areas due to reduced precipitation and/or increased evapotranspiration in Amazonia and Northeast Brazil.

To the south is much of the country's agriculture sector.  The prediction for this area is that it will receive an increase in rainfall and higher probability for flooding.