Climatology
This page presents Vietnam's climate context for the current climatology, 1991-2020, derived from observed, historical data. Information should be used to build a strong understanding of current climate conditions in order to appreciate future climate scenarios and projected change. You can visualize data for the current climatology through spatial variation, the seasonal cycle, or as a time series. Analysis is available for both annual and seasonal data. Data presentation defaults to national-scale aggregation, however sub-national data aggregations can be accessed by clicking within a country, on a sub-national unit. Other historical climatologies can be selected from the Time Period dropdown list.
Observed, historical data is produced by the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) of University of East Anglia. Data is presented at a 0.5º x 0.5º (50km x 50km) resolution.
Vietnam has both a tropical climate zone and a temperate climate zone, with all of the country experiencing the effects of the annual monsoon. Rainy seasons correspond to monsoon circulations, which bring heavy rainfall in the north and south from May to October, and in the central regions from September to January. In the northern regions, average temperatures range from 22–27.5°C in summer to 15–20°C in winter, while the southern areas have a narrower range of 28–29°C in summer to 26–27°C in winter. Vietnam’s climate is also impacted by the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which influences monsoonal circulation, and drives complex shifts in rainfall and temperature patterns which vary spatially at a sub-national level.