Climate Change Chart of Beirut, Lebanon

Overview of climate changes

Temperature changes

Averaged across calendar months, monthly mean temperature shows a difference of +1.46 °C in the more recent period; this is an unweighted comparison of monthly means, not a day-weighted annual average or a measure of daytime maximum temperatures. The monthly differences were not uniform: the largest increase was in December, at +2.82 °C, while May had the largest decrease, at -0.37 °C. These are comparisons of each month’s mean between reference periods, not evidence of a continuous change between them.

Changes in rainfall

Mean daily rainfall averaged across calendar months had a difference of +0.22 mm/day in the more recent period. This unweighted comparison of monthly means describes daily amounts rather than monthly rainfall totals, and does not imply that every month became wetter. The largest monthly increase was in December, with a difference of +1.19 mm/day; by contrast, March recorded the largest decrease, at -0.61 mm/day. Together, these monthly contrasts show why the overall mean difference should not be read as a uniform shift across the calendar.

Changes in sunshine duration

Mean daily sunshine duration, averaged across calendar months, had a difference of -0.19 hours/day compared with the earlier reference period. This is an unweighted mean of monthly daily-hour averages, rather than a day-weighted annual measure. The largest monthly decrease occurred in February, with a difference of -0.44 hours/day; that month-specific contrast is distinct from the average across all calendar months and does not establish a continuous trend.

Changes in snowfall

Mean daily snowfall averaged across calendar months had a difference of -0.04 mm/day in the more recent period. The figure is an unweighted comparison of monthly means, not a monthly total, and its small size should be understood at the precision shown rather than as evidence that snowfall was absent. The largest monthly decrease was in February, at -0.39 mm/day; this describes a difference in that month’s daily mean, not a change shared by every month.