•The five-day forecast covers this weekend until Tuesday next week.
•The forecast comes as the country slides into what may be a long dry spell this month.
Image: FILE
Your nights are about to get considerably colder with the latest weather maps suggesting temperature levels will plummet to five degrees in some places this week.
The weather maps show unusually low night temperatures in many parts of the country and even a chance of light rains in the Rift Valley.
Residents of Nairobi, Nyandarua, Laikipia, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu, Meru, Embu, Tharaka and Nairobi – collectively known as the Highlands east of the Rift Valley – may particularly need an extra duvet.
Dr David Gikungu said temperatures in these counties will drop from a high of 30 degrees during the day, to below six degrees at night.
The five-day forecast covers this weekend until Tuesday next week.
Some places may have light showers on Monday and Tuesday.
“Most parts of the country will be generally sunny and dry. However, a few areas in the highlands east and west of the Rift Valley, the Lake Victoria Basin and the Rift Valley may receive light to moderate rainfall,” Dr Gikungu said.
Siaya, Kisumu, Homabay, Migori, Kisii, Nyamira, Trans Nzoia, Baringo, Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo-Marakwet, Nandi, Nakuru, Narok, Kericho, Bomet, Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma, Busia and West Pokot counties will also have chilly nights.
Nighttime temperatures will fall below ten degrees until Tuesday and many places will have some rain.
North-western (Turkana and Samburu Counties), northern-western Kenya and the Coast will also have high temperatures and relatively cooler nights.
The forecast comes as the country slides into what may be a long dry spell this month.
Earlier this month, the Met department advised authorities to prepare for possible drought in large swathes of eastern Kenya, caused by a La Nina that is expected to develop this month.
However, the meteorological department said this will be a weak La Nina, quelling fears of countrywide drought.
Met director Dr Gikungu said in a three-month (October-December) forecast, that western Kenya is still likely to get near to above-average rains.
Central Kenya is expected to have a poor to fair distribution of rain, beginning next month.
However, the rains will reduce drastically as you move towards eastern Kenya and the border with Somalia.
“This will be driven by weak La Nina conditions which are likely to develop during September to November and persist into early 2025 and a neutral Indian Ocean Dipole,” he said.
La Niña has the opposite effect of El Niño. It is associated with depressed rainfall in Kenya.
The weatherman said the country should maximise production, even with little rains, to offset the effects of drought.
“The expected deficit in rainfall over the eastern sector of the country is likely to cause a slide into the alert phase of the drought early warning system, which might progress to the alarm worsening phase as the season progresses,” Gikungu said.
He said the short (October-December) rains will begin late in most places, except in western Kenya where the ongoing rains will continue.
The predicted onsets, cessations and distribution of rainfall were derived from the year 2020, which appears to have similar weather to 2024.
“The rainfall outcomes for this analogue (similar) year are for reference only and should not be interpreted as part of the forecast. Rather, they provide a sense of the rainfall outcomes that can occur given broadly similar global climate conditions,” he said.
The specific forecast shows the ongoing rainfall in western Kenya will not stop, but continue through September to December.
This region refers to Siaya, Kisumu, Homa Bay, Migori, Busia, Kisii, Nyamira, Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu, West Pokot, Elgeyo Marakwet, Nandi, Kericho, Bomet, Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma, Baringo, Nakuru, parts of Narok, parts of Laikipia and western Nyandarua.
The rains here will be near to slightly above the long-term average amounts. It will cease in the third to fourth week of December.