Winter Loses Meaning at the Equator

Holly Zynda
Published: December 30,2016

Amazon Rainforest
(LUIS ROBAYO/AFP/Getty Images)

Extreme temperature drops and blinding blizzards giving you the blues? Turn up the thermostat, close your eyes and imagine yourself on the equator, where winter’s icy breath never reaches.

In most equatorial countries, whatever the time of year, you can expect temperatures to hover in the high 70s to low 90s. And no matter the calendar month, these areas receive about 12 hours of sunlight and 12 hours of darkness in a day. Therein lies the key to their year-round heat and absence of extreme temperature shifts and seasonal divisions.

We can thank the Earth’s tilt for the seasons we experience. Summer occurs for a given hemisphere during the time of year that it is tilted to receive the maximum amount of direct sunlight. When its tilt positions it to receive the least amount of direct sunlight, that hemisphere has reached winter. In the Northern and Southern hemispheres, dramatic climatological fluctuations may occur between seasons.

The equator demarcates the Earth’s widest place, equidistant to the North and South poles. It doesn’t tilt much as Earth rotates on its axis and accordingly soaks up more of the sun’s rays than any other place in the world. Through all 12 months of the year, its 24-hour day is divided down the middle between light and dark. Since the equator’s position relative to the sun hardly changes, the concept of seasons has less meaning at zero latitude.

The most notable division in season isn’t between hot and cold but between wet and dry. Equatorial regions tend toward the tropical. Annual rainfall exceeding 100 inches is not unusual for many of these countries.

The precise months during which the rainy season occurs on the equator vary moderately. But from Peru to Equatorial Africa, some portion of the period between December and May is defined by heavier than usual precipitation. The movement of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), a belt of atmospheric low pressure where the trade winds meet, helps to regulate the rainy season along much of the equator.

Fresh snow covered Mount Kilimanjaro seen at sunrise from Ambuseli game reserve in Kenya.
(MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/Getty Images)

Although the equator doesn’t boast traditional seasons, there is still climatological diversity to be found. The strength of the sun’s rays here doesn’t influence distinctive seasons, but at high elevations near the equator snow is possible. Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, for example, located 200 miles south of the equator, has glaciers near its summit. The only snowy point situated directly atop the equator is its highest point, Cayambe, a volcano in Ecuador with a permanent snow cap. These snowy peaks are an exception to the usually humid equatorial climate.

Passing through hot, steamy rainforests, the equator is home to some of the world’s most impressive flora and fauna. Consistent warmth and loamy, rain-softened soil help an abundance of life to thrive year-round. Generally, the closer to the equator, the greater the biodiversity. In these parts, the growing season never ends.

The idea of tropical humidity might sound Idyllic when you’ve been digging your car out from the snow for months on end. But if seasonal variety is the spice of your life, you probably won’t be migrating to an equatorial country any time soon.

Holly Zynda is a copy editor, proofreader and writer with a lifelong passion for the written word. She owns and operates Owl Intermedia, a content production and editing company, and has provided writing and editing services for companies ranging from GoPro and Reputation.com to The California Environmental Protection Agency and Genentech.