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Gelsenkirchen weather by month: averages, rainfall & climate trends

Gelsenkirchen has well-marked seasons, with 16.1°C between its warmest and coolest monthly means. Rainfall is spread quite evenly across the year. Gelsenkirchen weather by month: average temperatures, rainfall, extremes and how the climate has changed since 1940.

Today vs average

+0.2°Chigh near average

14° / 10°Today
14° / 8°Average
see today in detail →

How it's changed

+2.0°Caverage temperature, 2016–2025 vs 1940–1949average temperature vs 1940–4932frost days a year now (2016–2025) · 67 in the 1940sfrost days a year · 67 in the 1940s11days above 30°C a year now (2016–2025) · 6 in the 1940sdays above 30°C · 6 in the 1940s+2.0°C vs the 1940s · see how it's changed →
Weather by montha typical year, averaged over the full recordJanuary, rain 80 mmhigh 4°low 0°February, rain 67 mmhigh 5°low 0°March, rain 70 mmhigh 9°low 2°April, rain 62 mmhigh 13°low 5°May, rain 72 mmhigh 18°low 9°June, rain 78 mmhigh 21°low 12°July, rain 85 mmhigh 22°low 14°August, rain 78 mmhigh 22°low 14°September, rain 70 mmhigh 19°low 11°October, rain 69 mmhigh 14°low 8°November, rain 77 mmhigh 9°low 4°December, rain 83 mmhigh 5°low 1°wettest month July, 85 mm · 892 mm a yearsee month by month →

Right now

What it's doing today vs the historical average for this date.
Overcast

Right now

13.1°

12°feels like
82%humidity
10°dew point
9 km/hfrom S
UV index0.8
sunrise08:06sunset18:26day length10h 20m
TodayOvercast14°10°
ThuPartly cloudy12°7°
FriDrizzle13°9°
SatPartly cloudy12°8°
SunDrizzle12°9°
MonOvercast12°7°
TueDrizzle15°10°

On this date: October 21

Today (forecast)
14° / 10°
Average for October 21
14° / 8°

High near average · +0.2°C

  • Highest since 1940: 21.7° · 2012
  • Lowest since 1940: 0.9° · 1997
  • One year ago: 14° / 12°

Every October 21 in history, coldest to hottest

▲ Daily highs▼ Daily lows

Dots show daily highs (top) and lows (bottom) for each October 21 on record (n = 86). Outlined dots are today's forecast.

Area we sample

Each city's history comes from one ERA5 grid cell, about 28 km across, shown by the dashed box. Near mountains or coasts, conditions can vary across the cell.

Location & data

Historical weather for Gelsenkirchen is sampled from the ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at 51.51°N, 7.10°E, with daily records since 1940.

Coordinates
51.51°N, 7.10°E
Time zone
Europe/Berlin
Period
1940–2026
Data source
ERA5 (ECMWF)

Last 30 days

22 of the last 30 days were warmer than the historical average for that date. Average difference: +1.8°C.

Each bar is one day, from morning low to afternoon high. Warm-colored bars are days whose mean ran above average; cool bars ran below. The dot inside the bar is the daily mean. The shaded band is the typical 10–90% range expected for that date. Average = the day's mean temperature averaged across every year of record (1940–2026) for that calendar date.

This date over the years

One dot per year, showing the mean temperature on this calendar date. Dots are warmer or cooler than the long-term average (dashed line); the shaded band is the typical 10–90% range, and the highlighted dot is today's forecast. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Weather by month

Average temperatures and rainfall for each month: a typical year, from the full record.

Climate overview

The year peaks in July, at around 22.5°C by mid-afternoon, with nights around 13.9°C. The coolest month is January, when afternoons reach about 4.2°C and overnight lows sit around −0.1°C.

In total, Gelsenkirchen averages about 892 mm of precipitation a year; July is usually the wettest month (85 mm) and April the driest (62 mm). Precipitation falls on roughly 123 days in a typical year.

The record here starts in 1940, and since then the annual mean in Gelsenkirchen has climbed 2.0°C from the first ten years to the last ten. Where the first decade averaged 65 frost days a year, the recent one saw about 30.

Climate graph (climograph)

July is the warmest month, January the coolest: a yearly swing of 16°C. Wettest month: July (~85 mm). Whole year averages ~892 mm of rain.

Bars = average monthly rainfall (right axis). Lines = average daily high and low (left axis). Average = each month's value averaged across every year of record (1940–2026).

Rainy days by month

About 123 rainy days a year: most in January (~12), fewest in September (~9).

Bars = average number of days with ≥ 2 mm per month. Hover for the monthly rainfall total.

Monthly wind

Average daily peak wind at 10 m, by month.

Monthly solar energy

Average daily incoming solar energy in megajoules per square metre: the record's own proxy for how sunny the month is.

Gelsenkirchen month by month: what to expect

Typical conditions for each month, averaged across the full record (since 1940). Daylight is the time from sunrise to sunset. Highest and Lowest are the most extreme values in the ERA5 dataset (modelled since 1940), so they can differ from official weather-station readings.

MonthAvg highAvg lowRainRainy daysDaylightHighestLowest
January4.2°−0.1°80 mm128.1 h15.7° (2023)−23.9° (1942)
February5.4°0.2°67 mm109.7 h19.8° (2019)−21.5° (1956)
March9.3°2.4°70 mm1011.5 h24.4° (2021)−17.2° (1987)
April13.5°5.1°62 mm1013.6 h29.2° (1968)−5.6° (2003)
May17.8°8.9°72 mm1015.4 h33.4° (2017)−1.4° (1957)
June20.7°12.0°78 mm1016.4 h35.8° (2017)1.6° (1962)
July22.5°13.9°85 mm1116.0 h39.6° (2019)5.7° (1964)
August22.3°13.7°78 mm1014.4 h36.8° (2018)5.6° (1956)
September18.9°11.0°70 mm912.4 h33.0° (2016)2.5° (2018)
October14.2°7.7°69 mm910.4 h27.3° (2018)−4.7° (1997)
November8.6°3.9°77 mm118.6 h20.1° (2014)−9.4° (1965)
December5.4°1.4°83 mm117.6 h16.5° (2022)−18.4° (1978)

How it's changed

Year-by-year signals from 1940 to today.

Climate stripes

Annual mean shifted from 1940–1949 to 2016–2025 by +2.0°C.

Each vertical stripe is one year. Color encodes how much that year's annual mean differed from the long-term average. Average = each year's annual mean compared to the average of all years (1940–2026). cooler ← → warmer

Annual mean temperature

Long-term trend: +0.25°C per decade.

One point per year, showing the temperature averaged across the whole year. The dashed line is the least-squares long-term trend. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Seasonal warming

Dec–Feb is warming fastest: +0.39°C per decade.

Each faint line is one three-month period's average per year; the bold dashed line is its long-term trend. Different parts of the year often warm at different rates. Based on ERA5 reanalysis: modelled estimates, not station readings.

Hot days vs frost days

Days ≥ 30°C per year: 5.7 early in the record → 10.7 recently. Frost days: 67 → 32.

Thin lines are raw yearly counts; thick lines are the smoothed trend that removes year-to-year noise. The hot-day threshold is auto-picked per city so the line actually moves. Average = a centered 5-year rolling average to smooth weather noise.

Yearly hot & cold extremes

Hottest day since 1940 in 2019, coldest in 1942: 39.6°C / −23.9°C.

One point per year: the single hottest and coldest day recorded that year.

Annual rainfall

~892 mm/year on average. Last decade: +6% vs that average. Long-term trend: +24 mm per decade.

One bar per year of total rainfall. Dashed line is the long-term average. Average = the average annual rainfall across every year of record (1940–2026).

Day-by-day grid

Each tiny square is one calendar day across the full record, about 30,000 days per city. Use the mode switch above the chart: Anomaly colors each day by how far it ran from the historical average for that date (red = warmer, blue = cooler), Daily mean temp shows the absolute mean temperature for the day (useful to see seasons and heatwaves), and Precipitation shows daily rainfall (useful to spot wet/dry seasons and droughts). Average = the long-term average for that calendar date (1940–2026).

Frequently asked questions about Gelsenkirchen

Which is the warmest month in Gelsenkirchen?
On long-term average, the warmest month in Gelsenkirchen is July (mean daily temperature of about 18.3°C) and the coolest is January (about 2.1°C).
How does today's temperature in Gelsenkirchen compare to the historical average?
On October 21, 2026, Gelsenkirchen is forecast to reach a high of 13.8°C and a low of 10.0°C. The long-term average for this date (the full record since 1940) is a high of 13.6°C and a low of 7.6°C, so today's high is about equal to that average.
How much has Gelsenkirchen warmed since 1940?
Comparing the first decade of the record (1940–1949) with the most recent (2016–2025), the annual mean temperature in Gelsenkirchen is about 2.0°C warmer.
How much does it rain in Gelsenkirchen?
Gelsenkirchen receives about 892 mm of precipitation per year on long-term average, with July typically the wettest month.
What is the average temperature in Gelsenkirchen?
Over the full record (since 1940), the annual mean temperature in Gelsenkirchen is about 10.2°C. The warmest month is July and the coolest is January.
What are the average temperatures in Gelsenkirchen by month?
Average daily highs and lows for each month in Gelsenkirchen (°C, full record since 1940): January 4°/0°, February 5°/0°, March 9°/2°, April 13°/5°, May 18°/9°, June 21°/12°, July 22°/14°, August 22°/14°, September 19°/11°, October 14°/8°, November 9°/4°, December 5°/1°.
What is the weather like in Gelsenkirchen in summer?
In summer, June through August, Gelsenkirchen is mild. Daytime highs sit at 21–22°C and nights at 12–14°C; July is the warmest month. Rain falls on about 10 days a month, adding up to around 81 mm.
What is the weather like in Gelsenkirchen in winter?
December to February is winter in Gelsenkirchen, and it is cold. Afternoons run 4–5°C and nights 0–1°C; January is the coldest month. Rain is steady at around 77 mm a month, spread over roughly 11 days.
What is the weather like in Gelsenkirchen in spring?
In spring, March through May, Gelsenkirchen is cool. March is still 9°C in the afternoon and 2°C at night, May already 18°C and 9°C. Rain falls on about 10 days a month, adding up to around 68 mm.
What is the weather like in Gelsenkirchen in autumn?
Autumn in Gelsenkirchen (September to November) is cool. September is still 19°C by day and 11°C at night; by November it is down to 9°C and 4°C. Rain is steady at around 72 mm a month, spread over roughly 10 days.
How many days a year does it rain in Gelsenkirchen?
On long-term average, Gelsenkirchen has about 123 days a year with at least 2 mm of rain or snow. The annual total is roughly 892 mm.

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