Summer, Chongqing Zoo
The climate of Chongqing is mainly characterized by sultry summer and warm winter. It is humid due to its long rainy season and dominant cloudy days. In summer, it is extremely sultry and unbearably hot. Hence, the city is also known as one of the three 'Furnace Cities' of China; the others being Wuhan and Nanjing. Mist casts a veil over the city for around sixty-eight days a year in early spring, late autumn and winter, earning its nicknamed as 'Foggy City'.
The yearly temperature averages 16 - 18 °C (61 - 64 °F), with a maximum of 43 °C (109 °F) and a minimum of -3.8 °C (25.2 °F). Temperature falls to its lowest in January, with a mean temperature of 7 °C (45 °F). Hence, it seldom frost or snow during the winter months. The warmest month is July with a mean temperature of about 27 - 28 °C (81 - 82 °F). The area is blessed with plenty of rain, recording about 1,000-1,400 millimeters (39.4 - 55.1 inches) a year. Raining season usually come in May and last till September. Rainfall distribution, however, is fairly uneven and that might be the cause of drought in summer.
