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Kyrgyzstan
Climate
The country's climate is influenced chiefly by the mountains,
Kyrgyzstan's position near the middle of the Eurasian landmass,
and the absence of any body of water large enough to influence
weather patterns. Those factors create a distinctly continental
climate that has significant local variations. Although the mountains
tend to collect clouds and block sunlight (reducing some narrow
valleys at certain times of year to no more than three or four
hours of sunlight per day), the country is generally sunny, receiving
as much as 2,900 hours of sunlight per year in some areas. The
same conditions also affect temperatures, which can vary significantly
from place to place. In January the warmest average temperature
(-4°C) occurs around the southern city of Osh, and around
Ysyk-Köl. The latter, which has a volume of 1,738 cubic kilometers,
does not freeze in winter. Indeed, its name means "hot lake" in
Kyrgyz. The coldest temperatures are in mountain valleys. There,
readings can fall to -30°C or lower; the record is -53.6°C.
The average temperature for July similarly varies from 27°C
in the Fergana Valley, where the record high is 44°C, to a
low of -10°C on the highest mountain peaks. Precipitation
varies from 2,000 millimeters per year in the mountains above
the Fergana Valley to less than 100 millimeters per year on the
west bank of Ysyk-Köl.
Data as of March 1996
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