Rainy Season Seems Just Around the Corner

It looks like sunny days are numbered for those living in Costa Rica – the National Meteorological Institute (IMN) has predicted that the rainy season will soon arrive to the central Pacific, Central Valley and northern Pacific regions, while the transition from dry to rainy is already under way in the southern Pacific region.

Using a database of previous years’ weather patterns, IMN deducts which years were similar to this year to predict when the rainy season could begin, explained the institute’s Director of Forecasting Werner Stolz.

According to these predictions, the rainy season – characterized by sunny mornings, rainy afternoons and clear nights – will likely begin between April 11-30 in the central Pacific, between May 1-15 in the Central Valley and between May 15-25 in the northern Pacific. In the southern Pacific region it was predicted to begin between March 27 and April 10, and sporadic rains indicate the transition to rain is under way.

Meanwhile, the Caribbean province of Limón experienced flooding this week caused by a storm an IMN statement called abnormal for this time of year.

Though the Central Valley is not transitioning into the rainy season yet, the area felt the effects of Limón’s weather this week as winds blew rains from the Caribbean to the central part of the country, Stolz said.

The Central Valley can expect the rainy season five days ahead of normal, and this has partly to do with the La Niña weather phenomenon, a cooling of the Pacific Ocean caused by heavy winds, Stolz said.