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Climate
Malta’s climate
is strongly influenced by the sea and is typical of the Mediterranean.
The Islands have a very sunny climate with a daily average
of over eight hours sunshine in mid-winter to more than 12
hours in summer. Winters are mild, with the occasional short
chilly period brought about by the north and north-easterly
winds from central Europe. Summers are hot, dry and very sunny.
Day-time temperatures in summer are often mitigated by cooling
sea breezes, but in spring and autumn a very hot wind from
Africa occasionally brings unseasonally high temperatures
and humidity. This is known as the Sirocco, or, in Maltese,
the Xlokk – this wind affects Greece and Italy as well;
in Malta the air is generally drier because of the short sea
track from the African coast. Annual rainfall is low, averaging
578mm a year, and the length of the dry season in summer is
longer than in neighbouring Italy. Sea bathing is quite possible
well in to the ‘winter’ months, and the peak beach
season can last until mid to late October.
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