What's the weather like in Panama?

Panama is a tropical country and as such it has a humid hot climate and temperatures are more or less the same all year round. Temperatures are high during daytime and nights are always cooler.

Humidity is generally important, especially during the rainy season which is between May and November.  The average annual rainfall is 2,500 mm along the pacific coast and 1,500 mm on the Caribbean side. The highlands enjoy spring-like climate with cool nights.

Factors that Influence Panama’s Weather

There are a number of factors that have an importance influence on Panama’s weather. These are: the geographical situation and relief; the oceanography; and the metereology.

As regards the geographical situation and relief, Panama is situated in the inter-tropical zone close to the terrestrial equator. It is a thin strip of land orientated from East to West and its coasts are washed by the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

Orography is one of the basic elements that define the weather since  the relief not only affects the thermic regime causing a lowering of the temperature in the air with the elevation, but it also affects the atmospheric circulation of the region and modifies the pluviometric airflow in general.
Panama’s closeness to both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans plays an important role and are the main sources for a high percentage of humidity in its environment.  Besides, due to the thin strip of land that separates these oceans, Panama’s weather show a strong influence from the sea. The ocean-atmosphere interaction determines, in great measure, the properties of heat and humidity of the air masses circulating over the oceans. The marine air currents are closely related to the rotation of the earth and the winds.
As regards meteorology, the semi-permanent anti-cyclone from the North Atlantic, noticeably affects the weather conditions in Panama because the Northeast Trade Winds are originated in this system. These Trade Winds reach Panama’s through the lower layers of the atmosphere and have a strong influence on the weather conditions in the country.