Precipitaciones

In the Dominican Republic, there are three rainy seasons: the Temporada Frontal (November – April), the Temporada Convectiva (May – July) and the Temporada Ciclónica (August – October).

High precipitation zones are highly influenced by trade winds carrying humidity over the Atlantic, which arrive to the country from the Northeast, producing the so-called lluvias orográficas (orographic rains). This phenomenon occurs first in the Cordillera Septentrional and the Sierra de Yamasá and later in the Cordillera Central. Annual rainfall in these areas fluctuates between 1,800 and 2,500 mm, with exceptions in the karstic zone of Los Haitises, where more than 3,000 mm per year has been recorded.

The same relationship, inversed, explains rainfall in the areas of least precipitation, which are fragile, prone to drought and desertification.  Such is the case in the Northwest regions, with a precipitation between 600 and 900 mm and the Southwest region, whose precipitation oscillates between 400 and 700 mm.

Precipitaciones máximas y mínimas anuales según localidad

Registro de lluvias en los últimos cuarenta años en la República Dominicana