Costa Rica Weather

 Costa Rica is located geographically only about eight degrees of north latitude of the equatorial line, thus Costa Rican climate is tropical all year round. However, because of the extraordinarily diverse amount of involved factors, the resulting country climate is a set of regional sub-climates. Therefore, the tropical weather of Costa Rica is greatly affected by its geography at the very local level. These factors include the totally heterogeneous relief (ranging from 0 to 3,431 m in only 51,100 km²) and the way as all its components (mountains, volcanoes, plains, valleys and plateaus) are distributed; the situation in respect to the two continental masses as American isthmus; the influence of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans (sea winds and ocean current with their own temperatures, besides low pressure systems, tropical depressions, tropical storms and hurricanes) and the general atmospheric circulation.

Current Weather of Costa Rica - Updated Satellite Image

Latest Image - GOES-13 1 km (only VISible, unavailable on night). Updates each ½h.
Based on Costa Rica satellite images thanks to RAMMB and CIRA programs (Colorado State University).

* As the image time is Universal Time Coordinated or UTC (as before with GMT), subtract 6 h to get Costa Rica time.

Costa Rica
Location: 9°55'N 84°4'W (At the center of America, in the American Isthmus).
Subdivisions: Provinces: 7, Cantons: 81, Districts: 473
Area: 51,100 km² (19,730 sq mi) | Population: 4,563,539 (2010)

Main Climatic Subdivisions:
Rainfall Regions (Drainage Basins Systems):
     Pacific: Dry and rainy period well defined. The dry one is from December to April.
     Caribbean: Dry period is not well defined (less rainy months have 100-200 mm of rainfall.
Climatic Regions:
     Northern Pacific, Central Pacific, Southern Pacific, Central Region, Northern Zone, Northern Caribbean and Southern Caribbean



The only Official Information and Current Weather Reports in Costa Rica are from Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (National Weather Institute)
See its Current Weather and Forecast Report (In spanish, but is a graphically eloquent flash-animated map report):
Friday 18 July 2017 ☼ | ☼☁| ✧☽☁
Partly cloudy to Cloudy | Possible Isolated Rain
This Friday in Costa Rica there will be a decrease in the humidity contained in the atmosphere, along with moderate trade winds, which will favor a more isolated precipitation behavior in the Central Valley and the North Pacific, in these two regions will predominate partial cloudiness in the greater part of the day; While in the Central and South Pacific a warm morning is expected followed by an afternoon with downpours and thunderstorms. In the North Zone and the Caribbean rainfall will be more likely during the morning and evening.

Early Morning:
Central Valley: Slightly cloudy.
North Pacific: Clear.
Central Pacific: Clear.
South Pacific: Clear.
North Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
South Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
North Zone: Partly Cloudy.

Morning:
Central Valley: Slightly to Partly Cloudy.
North Pacific: Sunny.
Central Pacific: Sunny.
South Pacific: Sunny.
North Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
South Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
North Zone: Partly Cloudy.

Afternoon:
Central Valley: Cloudy. Thunderstorm.
North Pacific: Partly Cloudy. Possible rainfall.
Central Pacific: Partly Cloudy. Thunderstorm.
South Pacific: Partly Cloudy. Thunderstorm.
North Caribbean: Partly Cloudy. Possible rainfall.
South Caribbean: Partly Cloudy. Possible rainfall.
North Zone: Partly Cloudy. Possible rainfall.

Night:
Central Valley: Partly Cloudy.
North Pacific: Partly Cloudy. Possible rainfall.
Central Pacific: Partly Cloudy.
South Pacific: Partly Cloudy.
North Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
South Caribbean: Partly Cloudy.
North Zone: Partly Cloudy

Temperatures (Max/Min ºC):

San José 26/19 | Alajuela 29/19 | Cartago 21/15 | Heredia 23/18 | Puntarenas 32/22 | Liberia 32/22 | Nicoya 32/24 | Bagaces 33/23 | Quepos 30/23 | Parrita 31/24 | Golfito 31/23 | Isla del Coco 30/20 | San Isidro de El General 29/19 | Guápiles 32/22 | Tortuguero 31/23 | Limón 30/23 | Sixaola 31/23 | Ciudad Quesada 26/17 | Upala 31/24 | Sarapiquí 31/23

Source: Daniel Poleo (Meteorologist) - Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN)

Costa Rica Weekly Weather Forecast (12 - 18 December 2016)

Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN)

Partly cloudy | Wind | Rain at Caribbean and Northern Zone | Low Temperatures
 This week features starting on Thursday, the dry season is beginning to accentuate both in the North Pacific and in the Central Valley, with wind and sparse rainfall predominating over the next few days. In the regions of Central and South Pacific during the weekend rains will continue presenting afternoon, although with a tendency to decrease to Sunday.

On the other hand, near the Caribbean coast, during Friday and Saturday there is a high probability of precipitation, which could enter the territory during the morning and the first hours of the morning of these days, reaching the North Zone and The mountain ranges in the afternoon

Source: Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN) - (Costa Rica National Weather Institute)

Costa Rica Weather in the month of February 2017

Monthly Weather Characterization from IMN

 February is characterized by dry conditions in the Central Valley and the Pacific, as well as a pattern of recurrent rains in the Caribbean and the Northern Zone. The dry season in the Pacific produces the Tropical Dry Forest) at the northern area.

Source: Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (IMN) - (Costa Rica National Weather Institute)

Current Oceanic Influence (18 August 2017)

From USA National Hurricane Center Advisories

Costa Rica Weather, General Description

 The seasons of Costa Rica climate are defined by the amount of rain that falls during a particular period of time. The year can be easily divided into two main periods or seasons, named by the local residents as "Verano", summer and "Invierno", winter. The "Verano" season is from December to April, and is the time of the year when there are more blue skies and few rains. The "Invierno" is the rainy period, from May to November, and during this time, in most locations, it rains constantly; with sunny mornings, sometimes cool, sometimes sweltering, and the rain coming during the first hours of afternoon.

The maximum rain quantity received is at the Northeastern lowlands, the Caribbean, near the Orosi Valley, Arenal and Monteverde areas, Talamanca Range, Osa Peninsula and Golfito (Southern Pacific) (annual rainfall of over 5,000 mm). Humidity is also higher on the Caribbean side than on the Pacific. The mean annual temperature on the coastal lowlands is around 80 °F (27 °C), 69 °F (21 °C) in the main populated areas of the Central Cordillera, and below 50 °F (10 °C) on the summits of the highest mountains. In the highest areas of Irazú Volcano (3,431 m) and Chirripó (3,810 m), temperatures sometimes can drop below 0 ºC during the end and beginning of the year.

The driest season of Costa Rica in most places is from December to April, while the rainy season is from May to November. On the Caribbean coast, however, December is by far the more wet month. The highlands areas are always cooler. The lowest elevation level in the country is the Pacific Ocean at sea level, the highest point is Cerro Chirripó, a somewhen glaciated mountain with an elevation of 3,810 m (part of Chirripó National Park). Even on a clear day, it is possible to see both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean from the top.

Weather related Books

This is a selection of recommended and suggested books for further reading and learning about weather and climate; which are available for look at their reader reviews and buying online if needed (* As a form to support this website, we are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites).

Books about Weather, Meteorology and Climate
• Bedford, D. & Cook, J. (2016). Climate Change: Examining the Facts. ABC-CLIO.
• Dunlop, S. (2003). The Weather Identification Handbook: The Ultimate Guide for Weather Watchers. Lyons Press.
• Lutgens, F., Tarbuck, E. J., & Tasa, D., F. (2015). The Atmosphere: An Introduction to Meteorology (13th Ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall.
• Ruddiman, W. F. (2013). Earth's Climate: Past and Future. Freeman.