Fiji Climate

Climate of Fiji - FIJI Shore and Ports

Fiji consists of over 300 archipelagos located entirely in the southwestern Pacific tropics and enjoy a temperate, harsh marine climate. El Nino - Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the main climate variable in Fiji due to its position on the Ecuadorian and Pacific Seas.

The prevailing large breezes in Fiji are tradeshows, which appear in all season with different durations and thicknesses. Passat breezes are blowing from southeast to northeast, creating a powerful wind and lee components to the micro-climate of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, Fiji's two biggest and most populous islets.

This, in turn, has a high impact on precipitation and to a smaller degree on temperature. At the coastline of these two major isles, Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, a regular ocean breeze blows during the daytime. Fiji is generally mild or temperate; heavy wind is much rarer and is most likely to be from June to October, when the trade wind is strongest.

Cyclone and depression can cause stormy or strong wind from times to times, especially from November to April. For more information, see the section ROPICAL CYCLES below. Seaside conditions near the Fiji coastline are quite even. Because of the impact of the nearby hot tropic water, the variations in climate are relatively small from days to days and from seasons to seasons.

Between the coldest month (July and August) and the hottest month (January to February) the mean temperature changes by only 2 to 4ºC. The temperature difference between the coldest and the hottest month (January to February) is only 2 to 4ºC. On the other hand, in the slipstream of the mountain, the daily temperature often rises by 1 to 2 degrees Celsius above that on the windwards or on the smaller isles.

On the coastline, mean overnight temperature can reach 18°C and mean daytime temperature can reach 32°C. Averages of up to 12ºC are possible in the centre of the major isles. Mean temperature of the ocean floor is between 26°C and 29°C per month.

In the tropics, the seasonally caused fluctuations in sunlight are less than in the higher climes. There is a geographical distinction in the sunlight dispersion between Suva (windward side of Viti Levu) and Nadi (leeward side of Viti Levu in winters (June to August). Passat wind on land leads to significant cloud cover along the weather coasts of the major isles, often (but not always) associated with rain or shiver.

Whereas these two sites are the two extreme ones of sunlight, most sites, complete with all the smaller external isles, get sunlight in the central area of the enclosed tab. Precipitation is very varied and is strongly affected by the island geography and the predominant southeast trade.

Passat windlasses are often filled with humidity, so that any high landmass on its way absorbs a large part of the rain. Viti Levu and Vanua Levu form humid climate areas on their windwards sides and arid climate areas on their leewards sides; therefore the major isles have distinct arid and humid areas.

On the smaller isles there is only a small climate difference. It is experiencing a pronounced rainy period (November to April) and a drought period (May to October), largely steered by the northern and southern motions of the southern Pacific Convergence Area, the region's principal precipitation system. During the rainy period, especially on the major islets, precipitation is usually plentiful, during the remainder of the year it is often insufficient, especially in the "dry zone" on the northwestern sides of the major isles.

The average yearly precipitation in the arid areas is 1500-2000 mm, while in the humid areas it is between 3000 mm on the shore and 6000 mm in the mountains. Depending on position and dimensions, the smaller island sizes vary from approx. 1500mm to 3500mm. Southeastern parts of the major isles generally experience 150 mm of precipitation per month in the drying period and 400 mm in the wetest time.

This part of the island has rains on about six of ten rainy and eight of ten rainy saes. Northwestern parts of these archipelagos lie in the shade of rains and generally get less than 100 mm per months during the arid time.

There is little fluctuation in the total number of months between the two areas during the rainy period. In the rainy period there are short, violent afternoons and storms in the leeward part of the major isles. It is located in an area that is sometimes crossed by hurricanes. Averaging ten to fifteen hurricanes per ten years will hit part of Fiji, and two to four will cause serious harm.

Certain sites may not be directly affected for several years, but the dominating northwest to southeast routes pose an elevated hazard of loss in the remote northwest archipelagos and on the northern and western coastlines of the major isles. SEASONALLY VARABILITY seasonally varability of tropic hurricanes is also predicated on the El Nino-Southern Oscillation Cycles, with Fiji at higher risks of more and greater cyclone strength during the ENSO Warmphase ("El Nino years").

In Fiji, large-scale floods are usually associated with a hurricane or severe rain storm or the onset of severe rain. Municipal centers near the confluence of the four major watercourses of the major islands (Nadi, Ba, Sigatoka and Nausori) are most affected. Local torrents during the rainy period (November to April) are widespread.

Places at risk from hurricane tides during cyclone storms are Nadi Bay and Denarau, the island of Mamanuca and Yasawa, the north Vanua Levu and Labasa and the Ba Riverside. The most common occurrence of these occurrences is in Fiji in the cold season, when low depths in the southern part near New Zealand drive the sea for long stretches.

Fiji suffers from severe rainfalls, which are associated with the ENSO (El Niño-Southern Oscillation) phenomena, leading to below-average precipitation in Fiji. Seasonal arid sites such as western Viti Levu during the winters, where precipitation is 50 mm or less per month, only need to suffer below normal precipitation for a few month to cause xerox.