Climate of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is the southern most state of India, surrounded by Andhra Pradesh from the North, Karnataka and Kerala from the west, Indian Ocean from the south and Bay of Bengal from the East. Cape Comorin or Kanyakumari, the southern most point of India lies in the state of Tamil Nadu. The Eastern and Western Ghats (mountain ranges) run along eastern and western borders of the state and meet at Sittlingi in Dharmapuri district, Tamil Nadu. The Western Ghats, bordering Tamil Nadu, breaks only at two points - Palakkad (25 km wide gap) and Shencottah, which connect the state with Karnataka and Kerala. The state of Tamil Nadu roughly extends between the 8° 04' N latitude (Cape Comorin) and the 78° 0' E longitude. Geographically, Tamil nadu is situated on the eastern side of the Indian Peninsula between the northern latitude of 8.5" and 13.35" and the eastern longitude of 76.15" and 80.20".

Climate of Tamil Nadu

The climate of Tamil Nadu is tropical in nature with little variation in summer and winter temperatures. While April-June is the hottest summer period with the temperature rising up to the 40ºC mark, November-February is the coolest winter period with temperature hovering around 20ºC, making the climate quite pleasant. Surprisingly, Tamil Nadu gets all its rains from the North-east Monsoons between October and December, when the rest of Tamil Nadu remains dry. The average annual rainfalls in Tamil Nadu range between 25 and 75 inches (635 and 1,905 mm) a year.

During summers (April- June), the coastal regions of Tamil Nadu become uncomfortably warm and humid, but the cool sea breezes in the afternoon make nights cool and pleasant. In this period the enchanting hill stations of the state provide much needed respite from heat and humidity of the plains.

The best period to visit Tamil Nadu is between Octobers to March, when the climate becomes pleasantly cool.