Mongolia has an extreme continental climate with four distinct seasons. The country basks in sunshine throughout year with average 260 cloudless days, and it is usually at the center of a region of high atmospheric pressure. Air temperature is very variable, falls to -300 C (-220 F) or so in the winter and rises to around 30° C (860 F) in the summer. Precipitation is highest in the north, which averages 20 to 35 centimeters (7.8 to 13.6 inches) per year, and lowest in the south, which receives 10 to 20 centimeters (3.9 to 7.8 inches). The extreme south is the Gobi, some regions of which receive no precipitation at all in most years. |