Editing Azores (section)

===Climate===
[[File:Azores.A2013168.1505.250m.jpg|thumb|right|Partly [[Cloud cover|cloudy]] counditions over the eastern and central groups; in this photo taken on June 17, 2013.]]
The archipelago is spread out at roughly the same latitude as the southern half of mainland Portugal, but its location in the mid-Atlantic Ocean gives it a generally tepid, [[oceanic climate|oceanic]], mild to warm [[subtropical climate]], with mild annual oscillations.

===='Azores High' anticyclone====
The Azores archipelago is located in a transition and confrontation zone between air masses of tropical origin and masses of cooler air of polar origin. The climate of the archipelago is largely determined by variations in the atmospheric pressure field over the North Atlantic. These variations conditioned by the mass of the American Continent and the Atlantic water mass are overlapped by a semi-permanent subtropical Atlantic [[anticyclone]], commonly known as the [[Azores High]]. This anticyclone experiences seasonal variations which can affect the archipelago in many ways.

In winter, the Azores anticyclone is positioned further south, and allows for a descent of the [[Polar front]], approaching it to the archipelago. In summer, on the other hand, the anticyclone's movement further north, leads to the departure of the polar front and its associated disturbances towards higher latitudes. Far enough away from the mainland coasts, the continental air masses that reach the archipelago are weakened by the maritime influence.

[[File:Pico Volcano.jpg|thumb|left|Mount Pico covered with snow.]]
The same can not be said for the higher altitudes (e.g. [[Mount Pico]]), where upper air masses of a continental origin and with a more direct pathway can reach the surface and present those areas with drier air and more extreme temperatures. At the same time, this free atmosphere circulating air transports [[aerosol]]s to the archipelago, namely volcanic ash or fine sands from the [[Sahara]] desert, which sporadically affect the radiation and air quality.<ref name="enciclopedia" />

Daily maximum temperatures at low altitudes usually range between {{cvt|16|and|25|°C|0}}. The average annual rainfall generally increases from east to west, ranging from {{cvt|700|mm|0}} in Santa Maria to {{cvt|1600|mm|0}} in Flores and reaching values above {{cvt|5000|mm}} on the highlands of [[Pico Island|Pico]].<ref name="Climate of the Azores islands">{{cite web |title=Climate of the Azores islands |website=Azores Weather |url=http://www.azoresweather.com |access-date=5 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090514035733/http://www.azoresweather.com/ |archive-date=14 May 2009}}</ref>

====Köppen classification====
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map Azores present.svg|thumb|300x300px|Köppen map of Azores]]
Under the Köppen climate classification, the eastern group ([[São Miguel Island|São Miguel]] and [[Santa Maria Island|Santa Maria]]) is usually classified as [[Mediterranean Climate|Mediterranean]] while the central and western group (especially [[Flores Island (Azores)|Flores]] and [[Corvo Island|Corvo]]) is increasingly more [[Humid subtropical climate|humid subtropical]] and overall rainier because of the effects of the [[Gulf Stream]]. This stream has a large effect over the sea temperature which varies between {{cvt|16|C}} in February and March, and {{cvt|23|C}} in August and September, and increases earlier in the western group.<ref>{{cite web |title=Portugal sea temperatures |url=https://www.seatemperature.org/europe/portugal/ |website=seatemperature.org |access-date=19 December 2021 |language=en |archive-date=19 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219021454/https://www.seatemperature.org/europe/portugal/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Salvador Rivas-Martínez data presents several different bioclimatic zones for the Azores.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mapas bioclimáticos y biogeográficos |website=globalbioclimatics.org |url=http://www.globalbioclimatics.org/form/tb_med.htm |access-date=26 February 2017 |archive-date=14 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014103938/http://www.globalbioclimatics.org/form/tb_med.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Seasonal lag]] is extreme in the low-sun half of the year, with December being milder than April in terms of mean temperatures. During summer the lag is somewhat lower, with August being the warmest month, though September is usually as warm or warmer than July.

==== Temperatures, humidity, and sunshine ====
Although temperatures as warm as {{cvt|32.1|C|F}} have been recorded on Pico, neither Ponta Delgada nor Angra do Heroísmo, the two largest cities, have ever been warmer than {{cvt|30|C|F}}. No snowfall or temperatures below {{cvt|0|C}} have been recorded at sea level on any of the islands.<ref name="IPMA Flores">{{cite web|url= https://www.ipma.pt/bin/file.data/climate-normal/cn_71-00_FLORES.pdf|title=Normais climatológicas 1971-2000>Flores |access-date=19 May 2025|publisher=Instituto de Meteorologia}}</ref><ref name="IPMA Angra">{{cite web|url= https://www.ipma.pt/bin/file.data/climate-normal/cn_71-00_ANGRA_DO_HEROISMO.pdf|title=Normais climatológicas 1971-2000>Terceira |access-date=19 May 2025|publisher=Instituto de Meteorologia}}</ref><ref name="IPMA Ponta Delgada">{{cite web|url= https://www.ipma.pt/bin/file.data/climate-normal/cn_71-00_PONTA_DELGADA_SAO_MIGUEL.pdf|title=Normais climatológicas 1971-2000>Ponta Delgada |access-date=19 May 2025|publisher=Instituto de Meteorologia}}</ref> The coldest weather in winter usually comes from northwesterly [[air mass]]es originating from [[Labrador]] in Canada. However, since those air masses are warmed up as they pass across the warmer Atlantic Ocean, temperatures by day even then exceed {{cvt|10|C|F}}.

The average [[relative humidity]] can range from 80% at the coast to over 90% above {{cvt|400|m}}. However, higher elevations above the [[planetary boundary layer]] can experience extremely low values close to 10%.<ref name="enciclopedia" /> Summers are especially humid in August and may increase the perceived temperature by a few degrees. Winters are not only very mild but also very humid and contribute substantially to the annual precipitation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Average Weather in Horta Portugal |url=https://weatherspark.com/y/31452/Average-Weather-in-Horta-Portugal-Year-Round |publisher=weatherspark.com |access-date=1 February 2021 |archive-date=6 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206191328/https://weatherspark.com/y/31452/Average-Weather-in-Horta-Portugal-Year-Round |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Insolation]] is relatively low, with 35–40% of the total possible value for sunshine, and higher in topographically lower islands such as [[Graciosa]] or [[Santa Maria Island|Santa Maria]], inversely proportional to precipitation. This is directly caused by the [[orographic lift]] of humid air masses and is especially pronounced in islands marked by high [[orography]].<ref name="enciclopedia">{{cite web |title=Clima |language=pt |publisher=Enciclopédia Açoriana |url=http://www.culturacores.azores.gov.pt/ea/pesquisa/Default.aspx?id=1903 |access-date=5 July 2021 |archive-date=9 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184526/http://www.culturacores.azores.gov.pt/ea/pesquisa/Default.aspx?id=1903 |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{climate chart
| [[Flores Airport]], [[Flores Island, Azores|Flores]]
|11.9|17.0|197.1
|11.5|16.7|171.3
|12.0|17.1|155.0
|12.7|18.0|104.4
|14.2|19.5|105.6
|16.2|21.8|97.3
|18.8|24.6|60.6
|19.8|25.7|68.0
|18.8|24.4|123.9
|16.5|21.8|179.5
|14.4|19.3|179.6
|12.8|17.8|223.9
|float=left
|clear=right
}}
{{climate chart
| [[Angra do Heroísmo]], [[Terceira Island|Terceira]]
|12.0|16.2|107.6
|11.5|16.1|110.1
|11.9|16.5|107.8
|12.4|17.3|85.7
|13.7|18.8|72.3
|15.8|21.1|55.2
|18.1|23.9|29.1
|19.1|25.1|48.3
|18.5|24.0|89.7
|16.4|21.3|115.6
|14.2|18.7|122.8
|12.7|17.0|155.1
|float=left
|clear=right
}}
{{climate chart
| [[Santa Maria Airport (Azores)|Santa Maria Airport]], [[Santa Maria Island|Santa Maria]]
|12.0|16.8|86.4
|11.5|16.6|71.8
|12.2|17.2|64.7
|12.6|18.0|56.3
|13.9|19.5|38.8
|16.1|21.6|21.7
|18.2|24.1|25.9
|19.4|25.3|36.8
|18.7|24.5|59.7
|16.8|22.0|77.0
|14.8|19.6|112.7
|13.2|18.0|77.7
|float=left
|clear=right
}}
{{clear|left}}

====Hurricanes====
{{Main|List of Azores hurricanes}}
Despite the northern position that the archipelago occupies, the Azores can be affected by the passage of [[Atlantic hurricane|tropical cyclones]], or tropical storms derived from them. This happens with a greater rarity, especially in late summer and autumn. Some can result from anomalies of low latitude systems, while others result from the return to the Atlantic after a route close to or even over the American continent. Though often small and in the process of dissipation, these cyclones result in many of the worst storms the archipelago is subject to.<ref name="enciclopedia" />

A total of 14 [[Tropical cyclone|tropical]] or [[subtropical cyclone]]s have affected the region in history. Most of them were either [[Extratropical cyclone|extratropical]] or [[Tropical cyclone|tropical storms]] when they affected the region, although several [[Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale|Category 1 hurricanes]] have reached the Azores.

The following storms have impacted the region while at Category 1 strength:
{{div col begin |colwidth=15em}}
*[[Hurricane Fran (1973)|Hurricane Fran]] in 1973
*[[Hurricane Emmy]] in 1976
*[[Hurricane Gordon (2006)|Hurricane Gordon]] in 2006
*[[2012 Atlantic hurricane season#Hurricane Gordon|Hurricane Gordon]] in 2012
*[[Hurricane Alex (2016)|Hurricane Alex]] in 2016
{{div col end}}

Several tropical or subtropical storms have hit the region, including:

{{div col begin |colwidth=15em}}
*[[Tropical Storm Irma (1978)|Tropical Storm Irma]] in 1978
*[[Hurricane Bonnie (1992)|Hurricane Bonnie]] in 1992
*[[1992 Atlantic hurricane season#Hurricane Charley|Hurricane Charley]] in 1992
*[[Hurricane Erika (1997)|Hurricane Erika]] in 1997
*[[2005 Azores subtropical storm|Unnamed subtropical cyclone]] in 2005
*[[2016 Atlantic hurricane season#Hurricane Gaston|Hurricane Gaston]] in 2016
*[[Tropical Storm Gaston (2022)|Tropical Storm Gaston]] in 2022
*[[2024 Atlantic hurricane season#Tropical Storm Patty|Subtropical Storm Patty]] in 2024
{{div col end}}

Storms that were extratropical when they impacted the region include:
{{div col begin |colwidth=15em}}
*[[Hurricane Tanya (1995)|Hurricane Tanya]] in 1995
*[[Tropical Storm Ana (2003)|Tropical Storm Ana]] in 2003
*[[Tropical Storm Grace (2009)|Tropical Storm Grace]] in 2009
{{div col end}}