Weather in Longyearbyen in December 2024
Average weather
Average temperature in Longyearbyen in December
The expected average maximum temperature in December is -5°C with a maximum of -1°C and a minimum of -19°C.
The average maximum temperature goes up 44% by the end of the month, compared with the beginning of the month, from -9°C to -1°C.
Is Longyearbyen warm or cold in December?
Longyearbyen is typically cold in December.
Maximum temperatures go down compared to the previous month from -7°C to -10°C. The minimum temperature also goes down from -12°C to -15°C.
Wear your winter warms as it will be cold. To save space, layer, and don’t forget gloves and a scarf.
Take a look at how December is compared to other months in Longyearbyen:
Climate in Longyearbyen in December
| November | December | January | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. temperature | ||||||
| -7°C | -10°C | -11°C | ||||
| Min. temperature | ||||||
| -31°C | -35°C | -35°C | ||||
| Max. temperature | ||||||
| +7°C | +5°C | +5°C | ||||
| Rainfall | ||||||
| 6 mm | 3 mm | 4 mm | ||||
| Wind | ||||||
| 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | ||||
| Humidity | ||||||
| 82% | 80% | 80% | ||||
| Air pressure | ||||||
| 1007 HPa | 1004 HPa | 1005 HPa | ||||
| Sunny days | ||||||
| 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| Cloudy days | ||||||
| 16 | 17 | 17 | ||||
| Rainy days | ||||||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Snowy days | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | 13 | ||||
December weather is still as ok as in November. It’s getting colder in December. From -7°C in the day, the average maximum temperature lowers to -10°C. As December arrives, the amount of rainfall goes down. On average, the rainfall volume decreases from 6 mm to 3 mm. It feels drier, as humidity decreases from 82% to 80%. The average wind speed doesn’t change much during December, staying around 3 m/s. The amount of sunny days stay about the same, averaging 0 sunny days during the month.
January brings much the same weather, it remains ok.
Wind
The average wind speed is 4 m/s getting up to 7 m/s which is a medium breeze. You can feel it, especially getting out of the water.
The average wind speed in Longyearbyen is gradually decreasing during December, going from 6 m/s to 4 m/s over the course of the month.
Snow
December is one of the snowiest months in Longyearbyen.
Here’s how December is compared with other months in the amount of snow, total mm:
How was the weather last December in Longyearbyen?
Climate Change over Years
The climate in Longyearbyen in December has not changed much over the last 43 years.
The average temperature was the lowest in 1988 (-7°C) and the highest in 2016 (+1°C). The driest year was 1998 with only 51 mm of rainfall, and the wettest year was 2016 with 381 mm.
FAQ
Is December a good time to visit Longyearbyen?
Can you sunbathe in Longyearbyen in December?
Is Longyearbyen rainy in December?
Is it sunny in Longyearbyen in December?
Monthly weather in Longyearbyen
Source of the data
For this page, we’ve looked at the typical weather in Longyearbyen, based on historical hourly weather data from January 1, 1979, to December 31, 2023.
For past dates, we show actual recorded data at the location at that time. Forecasts are based on recorded weather during that day of the year, averaged over the total years for which we have records (unless stated otherwise). The daily temperature is the highest recorded temperature in the shadow during that day.