Africa
Africa spans the equator and contains some of the world's most extreme heat in the Sahara, while its southern highlands and Atlas Mountains experience genuine cold. The WMO's invalidation of a long-standing Libyan heat record in 2012 reshaped our understanding of African temperature extremes.
Highest Temperatures
African record high (post El Azizia invalidation)
55.0°C
131°F -- treat as approximate given 1930s instruments
Kebili
Following the WMO's 2012 invalidation of the El Azizia, Libya record of 58°C -- discredited after investigators found an inexperienced observer, incorrect instrument type and likely measurement errors -- Kebili is often cited as the African record. Some meteorologists consider this reading also uncertain given 1930s instrument quality.
Note: invalidated record
58.0°C
136.4°F -- WMO invalidated 2012
El Azizia
The WMO formally invalidated this record in 2012 after a nine-member panel found multiple sources of error: an inexperienced observer, an incorrect instrument type, and likely measurement in the wrong units. It is one of the most significant examples of record revision in modern climatology, and stood as the supposed world record for 90 years.
Regularly extreme heat -- central Sahara
50°C+
Routinely in summer; many readings unverified
Sahara Desert
The central Sahara regularly exceeds 50°C at ground level in summer. Automated stations in remote desert areas have recorded air temperatures approaching 50°C, though many such readings lack full WMO verification due to the remoteness of the stations and limited instrument maintenance.
One of Earth's hottest cities by average temperature
48.0°C
118.4°F -- regularly approaches 50°C in May and June
Wadi Halfa
Wadi Halfa is one of the hottest cities on Earth by average annual temperature and regularly approaches 50°C in May and June before the Intertropical Convergence Zone brings moisture northward. The location on the Nubian Desert in far northern Sudan provides no maritime moderation.
Lowest Temperatures
African cold record -- WMO recognised
-23.9°C
-11°F
Ifrane
Ifrane sits at 1,635m in the Atlas Mountains and experiences genuine alpine conditions -- regular snowfall in winter and frosts throughout the year. It is sometimes called "Little Switzerland" by Moroccans. The Atlas Mountains are cold enough to host populations of Barbary macaques, the only wild primates in Africa outside sub-Saharan latitudes.
Southern Africa alpine cold
~ -24°C
~ -11.2°F -- Lesotho alpine interior
Drakensberg highlands
Lesotho, the high mountain kingdom entirely surrounded by South Africa, has recorded temperatures approaching -24°C in its alpine interior. The Drakensberg highlands regularly experience hard frosts throughout the year at altitude. Lesotho has no land below 1,400m -- the highest lower boundary of any country on Earth.
Precipitation
One of the wettest places on Earth
~10,287 mm
~405 inches annual average
Debundscha
At the base of Mount Cameroon, Debundscha intercepts moisture from the Gulf of Guinea. The mountain is a 4,095m active volcano, and the combination of warm, humid air from the Gulf and the orographic lift of the volcano's flanks produces almost continuous rainfall. It is one of the two or three wettest locations on Earth.
Exceptionally high rainfall -- Gulf of Guinea
~9,000-10,000 mm
~354-394 inches annually
Bioko Island
Bioko Island also experiences extreme rainfall due to its position in the Gulf of Guinea and the presence of Mount Santa Isabel at 3,011m, which forces moist onshore air upward rapidly. The island sits directly in the path of Atlantic moisture transported into the Gulf during the West African monsoon season.
Wind
Notoriously extreme coastal winds
100+ km/h
Storm-force gusts common; specific records less documented
Cape of Good Hope and surrounding coastline
The Cape of Good Hope and surrounding Southern Ocean coastline is notorious for extreme winds as frontal systems circle Antarctica largely unimpeded. Storm-force winds exceeding 100 km/h are routine. The Cape was historically called the "Cape of Storms" by early Portuguese navigators -- the name "Good Hope" was a diplomatic rebranding intended to encourage use of the route.