Weather in Baikonur

This page gives an idea of the weather conditions in Baikonur during the launch campaign:
Temperature below as read at ca 8:00 am on the thermometer outside at the entrance of Hotel Sputnik.
Temperatures increase a lot in the day particularly under sunny conditions.
January 2010
W 13: -10C, slight wind
T 14: -12C, no wind
F 15: -12C, no wind, sunny
S 16: -14C, no wind
S 17: -10C, very light snow, then very sunny
M 18: -10C, no wind
T 19: -18C, no wind
W 20: -19C, strong north/east wind, very sunny
T 21: -19C, no wind, overcast/partly sunny
F 22: -10C, no wind, extremely sunny
S 23: -12C, no wind, overcast
S 24: -9C, no wind, Snow fall in the morning clearing up in the day
M25: -11C, no wind overcast, then clear
Frost in the trees.

T26: -9C, strong gushes of wind, cloudy the whole day
W27: -8C, strong Northern wind, overcast, buran-like weather in the afternoon
Buran= snow storm in Russian language
T28: -10C, no wind, foggy cleared up in the day
F29: -6C, very slight wind, clear
S30: -10C, slight breeze, very clear and sunny weather :-), full moon
S31: -10C, no wind, sunny
February 2010
M1: -13C, no wind, very sunny
T2: -13C, breeze, very sunny
W3: -17C, slight breeze, very sunny
T4: -20C, no wind, very sunny :-)
F5: -22C, windy, sunny
S6: -14C, breeze, sunny after noon
S7: -20C, breeze, very sunny
M8: -22C, no wind, very sunny
T9: -22C, no wind, very sunny
W10: -22C, no wind, very sunny
T11: -22C, no wind, very sunny
F12: -26C, light breeze, very sunny
Proton rocket launch (Intelsat 16) at 6:39 am sharp, visible from the Hotel Sputnik yard looking in the Northern direction... in the starry night, the rocket looked like a huge comet. It was possible to see the booster separation. Distance from launch pas was about 50 kms.
S13: -25C, very light northern breeze, very sunny

S14: -19C, no wind, very sunny, beautiful light
M15: -16C, slight breeze, sunny becomes hazy
T16: -14C, slight breeze, sunny becomes hazy
W17: -6C, breeze, overcast and hazy the whole day
T18: -4C, North/Western breeze, overcast in the early morning but cleared up over the day
F19: -11C, no wind, very sunny
Beautiful frost is the trees.

S20: -6C, no wind, overcast
S21: -11C, No wind, very sunny (superb Sunday particularly mild in the afternoon)
M22: -6C, no wind, overcast

T23: 0C, slight east-southern breeze, heavily clouded (similar to usual Dutch weather)
Unespectedly it was Raining in the evening! Дождь смывает снег (Russian saying meaning: rain washes off snow. Will spring break through suddenly? Anyway, we experience very rapid weather changes in this semi desertic area.
W24: 0C, wind, slight rain at the hotel departure and snow at the MIK
T25: -1C, slight wind, cloudy, showers and hail late after noon.
A picture shot a 18:57 from hotel (i.e. ca 1 hour before the canceled launch time), showing showers and hail over the city. Could it be storm over the cosmodrome?, Certainly not ideal weather conditions for a launch.

F26: -3C, no wind, light snow during the morning
S27: -3C, northern/east breeze, sunny
S28: -8C, no wind, very sunny (+4c in the afternoon)
Full moon seen for the Sushi Haus, 7 Microraion, Baikonur.

March 2010
M1: -8C, slight eastern breeze, sunny
T2: -7C, slight breeze, sunny (positive T in the afternoon)
W3: -7C, wind, very sunny
T4: -8C, strong easterly wind, very sunny
The red aspect of the steppe is amplified by the window light filtering of the Gaz-L mini bus. The Gaz-L is really a gazelle, it has no suspensions, it just jumps form potholes to potholes. Don't plan any activity during the transport :-)

F5: -7C, no wind, sunny then hazy
S6: -3C, no wind, partly clouded
S7: +3C, no wind, rainy, clearing up at end of day
M8: 0C, no wind, overcast, few drops of rain, clearing up at the end of the day
Baikonur sky at 19:30 seen for the Sputnik hotel in western direction

T9:-3C, slight North Western breeze, partly clouded, hazy.
Few birds (craw type) gather since a couple of days in the city; for getting food and preparing for nesting?

W10: -3C, slight breeze, overcast
T11, -5C, snow, slight Northern breeze, clouded.
Nice sunny episode at 13:00 when leaving MIK with 5 cm of snow

F12: -5C breeze, partly cloudy clearing up in the day
Morning sky and stalagmites on the sputnik roof edge at 8:00 am

S13: -2C, windy, sunny but hazy.
The Pinkerton Dogs welcome us when we arrive at MIK today with Gerhard (arrived from Astrium yesterday) for the purging. The name come for the American security team (Pinkerton) of the previous campaign on site 31 which fed the dog. .. like pigs:-). That is why Russians call them "Pinkerton" now...

S14: +2C, no wind, partly clouded
M15: -1C, very slight breeze, clouded and foggy in the morning
T16: +1c, no wind, cloudy (+11c in the afternoon, few people seated in beer gardens)

W17: +2c, windy, cloudy
T18: -4C, slight breeze, very sunny
F19: 0C, slight breeze, cloudy and rain, snow later in the day
S20: -5C, no wind, Sunny
Proton-1 Breeze M launch, Payload Echostar14; lift off at 21:27 Moscow time +3 hours Baikonur time). The rocket could be eared from the hotel (walls were amplifying the low frequencies)...
S21: 0C, slight southern west breeze, cloudy (spring)
M22:+1C, no wind, Sunny (Nauryz)
T23: +1C, no wind sunny
W24: +6C, no wind, clouded
T25: 0C, southern breeze, sunny (+18C in the at 18:00 in the city)
F26: +6C, no wind, very sunny (strong wind at the end of the day)

S27: -5C, northern wind, partly clouded
S28: -1C, Northern wind, very sunny
Blossoms start to grow, on Korolev Avenue

M29: -2C, wind, very clear and sunny! dusk seen from Hotel Sputnik entrance

T 30: -1C, moderate easterly wind, very sunny (full moon)
W31: +2C, moderate easterly wind, partly clouded (seen few Souliks/Susliks, Суслики, on the cosmodrome, they seem to have terminated their annual hibernation)
April 2010
T1: +2C, moderate wind, sunny (seen the first Swallows flying in town + small Bats flying in daylight...)
Moon seen from Hotel Sputnik in 8:30am

F2: +3C, Slight northern breeze, sunny (TM-18 Soyuz launch)
S3: +6C, slight east wind, lightly cloudy and hazy
S4: +10C, slight breeze, sunny, (Easter)
M5: +10C, no wind, Overcast in the morning slightly stormy (view from Hotel sputnik (9:00am)

T6: +8C, strong southern west wind, sunny with few high altitude clouds
W7: +7C, slight breeze, partly cloudy and hazy
T8: +8C, slight breeze, sunny/hazy (see also launch day)
F9:+7, windy, hazy/cloudy
S10: +8C, very windy, cloudy and slightly rainy
S11: +2C, breeze, cloudy/rainy
M12: +6C, slight breeze, cloudy (Gagarin's day)
(View in late afternoon on the Syr Darya river in the northern direction from the platform of the Cosmonaut Path at Cosmonaut Hotel)

T13: +6C, slight eastern breeze, sunny (Team returns to base)

Present weather conditions and weather forecast in Baikonur.