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Today, September 13, the sea temperature at Nuuk is 4.3 °C (40 °F). That is 0.5 °C warmer than the usual 3.8 °C in September. Rarely comfortable for swimming.
Warmest in August (5.1°C). Coldest in February (-1.4°C). Rarely comfortable for swimming.
| Month | Sea · Min | Sea · Avg | Sea · Max | Air · Min | Air · Avg | Air · Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | -1.1°C | -0.7°C | -0.3°C | -9.8°C | -9.5°C | -9.3°C |
| February | -1.6°C | -1.4°C | -1.1°C | -12.7°C | -12.3°C | -11.4°C |
| March | -1.6°C | -1.4°C | -1.0°C | -9.0°C | -7.9°C | -6.2°C |
| April | -1.0°C | -0.5°C | -0.1°C | -3.7°C | -2.3°C | -0.6°C |
| May | 0.1°C | 0.6°C | 1.1°C | -1.8°C | 0.1°C | 1.8°C |
| June | 1.8°C | 2.3°C | 3.1°C | 3.0°C | 4.8°C | 6.6°C |
| July | 3.7°C | 4.4°C | 5.3°C | 6.1°C | 8.0°C | 10.0°C |
| August | 4.3°C | 5.1°C | 6.0°C | 5.8°C | 7.3°C | 9.1°C |
| September | 3.1°C | 3.8°C | 4.4°C | 3.4°C | 4.5°C | 6.3°C |
| October | 1.7°C | 2.1°C | 2.6°C | -0.5°C | 0.3°C | 1.7°C |
| November | 0.5°C | 1.0°C | 1.4°C | -5.1°C | -4.8°C | -4.5°C |
| December | -0.5°C | 0.3°C | 0.8°C | -9.4°C | -9.1°C | -9.0°C |
Greenland's capital Nuuk sits at 64° north on the southwest coast, framed by the 1,210-metre peak of Sermitsiaq and a vast fjord system that reaches roughly 160 kilometres inland. Around 20,000 residents – about a third of the country – live below Store Malene, the mountain rising directly behind the colonial harbour and the national museum. Swimming is not the focus here, with Nuuk International airport ten minutes away and the Labrador Sea peaking at only 5–7 °C41–45 °F in August.
Today, September 13, the sea at Nuuk is 4.3 °C (40 °F)40 °F (4.3 °C) – cold-water swimmers only. The usual September average is 3.8 °C39 °F.
No single number works for everyone, so the scale on this page is only a guide to how the water feels: below 13 °C55 °F icy, 13–18 °C55–64 °F cold, 18–23 °C64–73 °F refreshing, 23–28 °C73–82 °F pleasantly warm and above 28 °C82 °F like a bath. Right now the sea at Nuuk is 4.3 °C40 °F.
In May the sea at Nuuk (Labrador Sea, Greenland) averages 0.6 °C33 °F – cold-water swimmers only. It keeps warming until August, when it peaks at 5.1 °C41 °F.
In October the sea at Nuuk (Labrador Sea, Greenland) still averages 2.1 °C36 °F – cold-water swimmers only. It peaks in August at 5.1 °C41 °F and cools slowly from there.