The Climates of Chile

Chile has a range of climates from the northern dry deserts to the southerly subpolar oceanic with the central Mediterranean climate being the favorite for most people. North of Santiago is the Atacama desert where some areas have no recorded rainfall. The major coastal cities like Iquique and Antofagasta can go years without rain. The climate classification for this area is cold desert (BWk)and semi-arid climates (BSk). The reason for this climate is the cold Humboldt current which runs north up the coast from Antarctica. This cold sea current keeps the temperatures cool preventing the formation of rain clouds. In the winter there is a lot of fog and cloud cover but not much rain and lots of sun in the summer. It keeps the temperatures moderate year round. Average temperatures run 70F in summer and 50F in winter. Of course, in the higher elevations of the Andes the temperature range is more extreme. Sea temperatures run from a high of 75F in the summer with a low of 62F in the winter. These extreme conditions keep most of the people living in cities or towns where water is available.

The central section of Chile from about Santiago south to Temuco is classified as warm Mediterranean (Csa) that is with a hot dry summer or temperate Mediterranean (Csb)that is with a warm dry summer. The dry hot summer is closer to Santiago and the further south you go the summers are cooler. The Csa climate is similar to Los Angeles, CA or Greece and the Csb is similar to Portugal or Cape Town, South Africa. These areas have mild, rainy winters with coastal areas being cooler and rainier. Sea temperatures rarely go over 65F.