🇹🇩Chad

Chad (approximately 1,284,000 km²) spans 7°–23°N across the transition from equatorial Africa to the Sahara, creating one of the continent's most dramatic climate gradients within a single nation. The landlocked country exhibits three distinct north-south zones: the Sahara Desert across the north, sparsely populated with under 200 mm of rain a year and home to the volcanic Tibesti Mountains rising to over 3,400 m at Emi Koussi; the Sahelian belt across the center, with grass and shrub steppe grading into thorny open savanna; and the Sudanian savanna in the south, with woodland savanna and the Chari and Logone rivers that supply most of Lake Chad's water.

The capital N'Djamena (12°06′N, elevation 298 m) sits in the Sahel transition. Annual precipitation ranges from under 50 mm in the northern Sahara to over 1,000 mm in the humid southern savannas, concentrated in a single rainy season (June–September in the Sahel, May–October in the south) driven by the northward migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). Mean annual temperatures are about 27–29°C across most of the country, with extreme pre-monsoon heat in March–May pushing average maxima above 40°C and occasional Saharan maxima approaching 50°C.

N'Djamena (Sahel, 298 m elevation) sees January highs of about 33°C with nights near 15°C and July highs of about 34°C, with approximately 510 mm annual rainfall concentrated June–September; severe pre-monsoon heat pushes March–May average maxima to about 40–42°C. Moundou (southern savanna, 8°35′N, 413 m) records January highs of about 34°C with nights near 15°C and July highs of about 30°C, with around 1,080 mm, benefiting from longer rains and woodland cover.

Abéché (eastern Sahel, 13°50′N, 545 m) sees January highs of about 34°C with nights near 16°C and July highs of about 35°C, with about 370–480 mm. Faya-Largeau (northern Sahara, 17°55′N) endures January highs of about 26°C with nights near 14°C and July highs of about 41°C, with a mere 12–18 mm annually, experiencing some of the most extreme desert conditions in Africa.

The severe shrinkage of Lake Chad (open water fell from approximately 25,000 km² in the early 1960s to about 2,000 km² by 1980, a loss exceeding 90%) resulted from persistent drought, over-extraction for irrigation, and reduced river inflows, affecting fishing communities across the basin. The 1970s and 1980s Sahel droughts caused widespread famine, livestock collapse, and mass migration throughout the region.

In 2022, the heaviest rains in Chad since 1990 flooded large parts of N'Djamena, leaving some areas reachable only by boat, and affected or displaced about 442,000 people nationwide; heavy rains in 2024 brought renewed flooding to Chad.

From November to March, the harmattan (a dry, dust-laden northeasterly wind from the Sahara) reduces visibility, cools temperatures slightly, and blankets the country in fine airborne particles. Climate projections indicate continued warming above the global average and increasingly erratic Sahel rainfall, with further stress on Lake Chad's waters and growing humanitarian crises.

Our archive covers 4 Chadian cities with daily ERA5 reanalysis data going back to 1940. The hottest July afternoons are in Abéché, with average highs around 33.2°C, while N'Djamena has the coldest January nights, with average lows near 16.4°C. Comparing the last decade against the 1940–1970 baseline, mean temperatures across these cities have risen by about 1.2°C.