Longyearbyen weather in May
In May, Longyearbyen has daytime highs averaging -1.6 °C, nights around -4.6 °C, with 6.1 wet days. Figures are 1991–2020 climate normals.
- -1.6°C Average high
- -4.6°C Average low
- 6.1days Wet days
- 22mm Rainfall
- 24h Daylight
Daily temperatures through May
How May develops
Averages for the first, middle and last part of the month, from daily 1991–2020 normals. Chance of rain is the share of years in which that calendar day recorded more than 1 mm.
| Days | Avg high | Avg low | Chance of rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–10 May | -3.4 °C | -7.1 °C | 21 % |
| 11–20 May | -2.0 °C | -5.1 °C | 19 % |
| 21–31 May | 0.3 °C | -2.1 °C | 19 % |
- Average highs rise from -3.4 °C early in May to 0.3 °C by the end of it.
What to expect
| Measure | Typical May | Share of the month |
|---|---|---|
| Days above 25 °C | 0 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days above 30 °C | 0 of 31 | 0 % |
| Days below 0 °C | 28 of 31 | 90 % |
| Days with more than 1 mm rain | 6.1 of 31 | 20 % |
Conditions in May
| Measure | Average |
|---|---|
| Mean temperature | -2.8 °C |
| Record high (1991–2020) | 6.2 °C |
| Record low (1991–2020) | -16 °C |
| Relative humidity | 81 % |
| Wind speed | 12 km/h |
| Cloud cover | 79 % |
Where Longyearbyen ranks in May
| Ranking | Position | Value |
|---|---|---|
| The coolest places in Europe in May | 1stof 50 | -1.6 °C |
| The coolest places in the world in May | 1stof 50 | -1.6 °C |
| The driest places in Europe in May | 7thof 50 | 22 mm |
May compared with the months around it
| Month | Avg high | Rainfall | Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | -11.6 °C | 36 mm | 81 % |
| April | -8.1 °C | 24 mm | 77 % |
| May | -1.6 °C | 22 mm | 79 % |
| June | 3.3 °C | 18 mm | 80 % |
| July | 8.2 °C | 32 mm | 84 % |
See all twelve months for Longyearbyen
- May is the 5th warmest month here.
- It is the 2nd driest month of the year.
- It ranks 2nd for least cloud cover.
- The sun does not set in Longyearbyen in May — this is the midnight sun.
- It rains on 6.1 of 31 days — 20 % of the month.
- Nights are about 3.0 °C cooler than the middle of the day.
- The hottest May day on record since 1991 reached 6.2 °C, 7.8 °C above the usual daytime high.
QuestionsMay in Longyearbyen, answered
How warm is Longyearbyen in May?
Daily highs average -1.6 °C and nights fall to about -4.6 °C, a spread of 3.0 °C between afternoon and dawn. That makes May the 5th warmest month of the year here.
Does it rain much in Longyearbyen in May?
May averages 22 mm of rain, spread over about 6 of the 31 days — 20 % of the month. Cloud cover averages 79 % of the sky.
How long are the days in May?
Longyearbyen averages 24 hours between sunrise and sunset in May. Day length is computed from latitude and date, so it is exact rather than modelled — but it says nothing about how much of that time is sunny.
Data sources and method
- ERA5 / ERA5-Land reanalysis — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), ECMWF. Copernicus Licence
- Open-Meteo — Open-Meteo.com. CC BY 4.0
- NOAA OISST v2.1 — NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory. Public domain
- GeoNames — GeoNames.org. CC BY 4.0
- Normal period
- 1991–2020
- Dataset version
- era5-1991-2020-scores1.1
- Last processed
Measured values come from ERA5 reanalysis and are reproduced unchanged. Calculated by us: daylight hours, beach and comfort scores, monthly rankings, threshold day counts, chance of a wet day by date, ten-day averages within the month. Full formulas are on the methodology page.
Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.