November 24, 2008 Update:
In view of the ongoing weather tragedy in Santa Catarina, I recommend that you check the rainfall maps, mentioned below, for a quick overview of rain patterns in Santa Catarina state.
Match them with the Santa Catarina (SC) map on the Brazilian Geography and Statistics Institute's IBGE Cidades to locate the cities where you're going in the rainfall zones. IBGE Cidades maps feature every single city in Brazil.
The rain maps reinforce the anomalous nature of the ongoing rainfall index - more than three times higher than the average for the month.
Santa Catarina is one of the Brazilian states most affected by weather and climate adversities. The state is subject to a great variety of conditions, including droughts, extratropical cyclones on the coast, and snow in the mountains. Since the state is also a very popular tourist destination throughout the year, travelers must get as much information as possible about weather conditions in each region and in each season.
Ciram – the Center for Information on the Environmental Resources and Hydrometeorology of Santa Catarina – is the organization that monitors the weather and the climate in Santa Catarina, in the south of Brazil. One of Ciram's missions is to minimize the negative impacts of adverse meteorological conditions on the population and the economy, and one of the services it provides is the issuing of severe weather alerts.
Ciram is connected to Epagri, which specializes in agropecuary research and rural extension in Santa Catarina.
Even though it is still not available in English, the Ciram website offers several resources that can be useful to non-Portuguese speaking Brazil travelers. Use them to empower your travel planning and your weather awareness before and during your trip to Santa Catarina.
Here are some of the resources available on the Ciram website:
Clickable Map of Santa Catarina
Divided into ten regions, the map of Santa Catarina is clickable for up-to-date daily weather and a forecast for the coming next four days.
As you click on a region, its name appears at the top of the chart (Oeste, or West, for example).
To the left of the map, where it says Escolha a cidade (choose the city), you can click for the cities monitored in that region.
Below the map, the illustrated weather report and forecast features manhâ/tarde/noite (morning/afternoon/evening) subdivisions; low and high temperatures in Celsius; direction, average speed and gust speed of winds (direção, vento and rajada).
Also illustrated, the important feature Fenômenos (Phenomena) lets the user know if there are significant weather alerts. If there are no alerts, you will see an image that looks like a traffic sign saying sem ocorrência.
Satellite Image
You can enlarge the image with a click. Rain clouds are indicated by colors in a progressive scale from less to more intense: grey and white (mild); green; red; blue (storms and hail).
Santa Catarina Rainfall Maps for the Year
One of the greatest features of the Ciram website is a rainfall map showing Santa Catarina rain patterns based on data collected from 1960 to 2004.
The map sequence on the right side of the Ciram page follows WMO criteria and uses data from 1961 to 1990.
