The climate of Salt Lake City varies greatly. Located in the Salt Lake Valley, the city is surrounded by mountains and the Great Salt Lake.
The city has four distinct seasons: a cold and snowy winter; hot and dry summers; and two relatively wet transitional periods. The climate of the Salt Lake City area is generally moist, not semi-arid as it is often claimed. Under the KÃÆ'¶ppen climate classification, Salt Lake City is in a transition zone between humid subtropical climate ( Cfa ) and damp hot continental climate ( Dfa ), with summer which is relatively drier than the rest of the year. The Pacific Ocean is a major influence on the weather, contributing storms from around October to May, with spring being the wettest season. The snow often falls during the winter, largely due to the lake effect of the Great Salt Lake. The only source of precipitation in the summer is monsoon rain moving north from the Gulf of California. Summer is hot, often reaching above 100 Â ° F (38 Â ° C), while winter is cold and snowy. However, winters are warmer than expected at these altitudes and latitudes, as the Rocky Mountains to the east and north usually block the highest poles from affecting the country during the winter. Temperature rarely drops below 0 Â ° F (-18 Â ° C), but often falls below freezing. temperature inversion during winter can cause a thick overnight fog and daytime mist in the valley as cold air, moisture, and pollutants are trapped in the valley by the surrounding mountains.
Video Climate of Salt Lake City
Overview
Maps Climate of Salt Lake City
Temperature
Winter temperatures are not as extreme as expected, given the height of 4,300 feet (1,310 m) and latitude (40 Â ° 45'N) of the city. The Rocky Mountains to the east and northeast of the country blocked most of the waves from the polar peaks positioned in the Great Plains to reach the city. The cold air that affects the city must come directly from the north or north-northwest of western Canada through fewer and lesser mountain intervents. Temperature rarely falls below 0 Â ° F (-17.8 Â ° C); Salt Lake City has undergone temperatures below zero for just 4 storm cycles in the last 10 years. However, the average non-zero day of the year is 2.3. [1] Salt Lake City averages 26 days with high temperatures at or below freezing. [2] In the winter, the warm air of Desert Southwest is usually only drawn into the city before the cold front comes from the northwest.
January is the coldest month with an average temperature of 29.2 Â ° F (-1.6 Â ° C). The maximum low temperature record of Salt Lake City is 2 Â ° F (-16.7 Â ° C), set on December 22, 1990, during periods of extended Arctic cold air, and overall low record temperatures are -30 Â ° F (- 34.4 ° C), set on February 9, 1933 during the historic cold air waves from the north. During the spring, the temperature remains warm and fast. Winter weather is usually last experienced in early to mid-April. Weather Summery first arrived in early to mid-May; the earliest temperature of 90 Â ° F (32.2 Â ° C) was recorded on May 2. The cold front usually stops arriving in late May or early June.
Summer temperatures are very hot, though moderated by the cool breeze of the Great Salt Lake and by the height of the city. The lack of cold fronts in the summer allows the temperature to become consistently hot due to strong, durable high pressure. Thunderstorms sometimes give almost the only aid in temperature. In an average year, 5 days hotter than 100Ã, Â ° F (37.8Ã, Â ° C), 23 days greater than 95Ã, Â ° F (35.0Ã, Â ° C), and 56 days more large from 90Ã, Â ° F (32.2 Ã, Â ° C). Â ° C) can be expected. [3]. However, such days also have very low humidity. Low humidity and altitude create ideal conditions for radiational cooling, and hence, large temperature changes. Summer nights are cool; the record low even in July is 40 Â ° F (4.4 Â ° C). July is the warmest month, with an average temperature of 77.0 Â ° F (25.0 Â ° C). Note the high minimum temperature of Salt Lake City is 81 Â ° F (27.2 Â ° C), set on July 18, 2016, [4] and the record high temperature is 107 Â ° F (42 Â ° C), first set at July 26, 1960 and again on July 13, 2002 (although the temperature in 2002 was slightly higher). Summer-like weather usually occurs in mid-September; the latest temperature of 90 ° C (32 ° C) was recorded on 30 September. The temperature cools rapidly in the fall. The first big cold front usually arrives anytime from mid-September to early October. Weather like the first winter is usually experienced in early to mid November.
The average annual temperature of Salt Lake City is 52.1 ° F (11.2 ° C), and the freeze-free period lasts an average of 167 days, from 30 April to 15 October, although it has been going from 124 to 236 day. [5] The freezing temperatures had occurred as early as September 13 (in 1928), and until the end of May 28 (1954).
Precipitation
Both the highest rainfall and humidity from March to May and the lowest from June to mid September. The main source of rainfall is the winter snow storms coming from the Gulf of Alaska, the late winter and spring rains of the Nanas Express made in Hawaiian waters, and the summer season of the Gulf of California. The airport averages 16.5 inches (419 mm) of rainfall per year, with the bench area receiving up to 20 inches (508 mm), mainly due to an increase in snowfall. May is the wettest month, averaging 2.09 inches (53.1 mm) of rainfall. Average moisture throughout the year is 55%.
The summer season rises from Mexico and Arizona through the region from mid-July and continues through September, bringing intense yet short-lived lightning storm activity. Tornadoes have been known to occur during this period, the most notable recent example being in 1999 when the F2 tornado struck downtown Salt Lake City, causing extensive damage and resulting in one death. Many of these lightning storms consist of dry lightning, which occurs when moisture is too low to support rain and rain evaporates before it reaches the ground. This is the main cause of forest fires in Utah during the summer. The smoke from such fires in nearby areas sometimes makes their way into the valley. Despite the intensity of the storm, low humidity, short duration, and isolasionism of the storm all play a role in making this the driest season. July is the driest month, with an average of only 0.72 inches (18.3 mm). At the end of autumn, the Pacific Ocean usually starts kicking again, and starting at the end of September rainfall starts to increase. During late summer and autumn, the remnants of tropical cyclones from the eastern Pacific occasionally reach Utah, resulting in heavy tropical rain. Weather events such as hail, freezing rain, and hail are rare in Salt Lake City. When they occur, they are short-lived and rarely accumulate. A record rainfall for one month occurred in September 1982, with 7.04 inches (179 mm), mostly due to the remains of Hurricane Olivia. The record 24-hour rainfall occurred from April 22-23, 1957, when 2.41 inches (61.2 mm) fell.
The first snowfall of the season is usually recorded in October, although significant snowfall usually does not occur until mid to late November. However, snow has been recorded in every month of the year in the mountains. It snowed in the valley as early as September 17 (in 1965). January averages most snowfall every month, with 13.6 inches (34.5 cm). Snowfall is common in mid-March, but the last snowfall of the season usually occurs early or mid-April, although measurable snow was recorded at the bottom of the valley until the end of May 18 (in 1977). However, significant snow may fall in March and in rare cases even in April. Measured snow fell on average from November 6 to April 18.
The airport also averages 61 inches (155 cm) of snow a year, which is more than most of the Great Plains and Mid-Atlantic locations. However, the location of benches near the mountains receives more, reaching 80 to 100 in (200 to 255 cm) each year. Four ski resorts located in Big and Little Cottonwood each averaging over 500 "snow per year.This high amount of snow can be credited to the lake effect, where a snow storm passing over Great Salt Lake is reinforced by warm water from the Effect The lake is usually strongest from mid-autumn to mid-winter, when the lake water is warmer and the soil temperature is cool enough to support the snow.
The snow storm is very rare in the valley of Salt Lake City because it rarely extreme winds. Although the average snowfall is relatively high, a large snowstorm of more than about 12 inches (30 cm) is rare in the valley. In addition, the average winter temperatures in the city are usually not cool enough to support snow cover throughout the winter. The maximum recorded snow depth in the city was 26 in (66 cm) on January 11, 1993. January 1993 was the most snowy recorded month, with 50.3 inches (128 cm). The 24-hour snow record occurred from 24-25 February 1998, when 18.9 in (48 cm) fell, while a single storm snow storm occurred from 6-10 January 1993, with 23.3 inches (59 cm). The hottest season on record was 1951-1952, when 117.3 inches (298 cm) fell, while the fewest snowy winters in the record were 1939-1940, with 18.5 inches (47.0 cm).
The airport averages about 37 and 97 days of snow and rainfall, respectively, each year. Daily suns range from a low of 3.6 in December to 12.3 in July, all for an abundant amount of nearly 3030 hours per year.
Other weather events
The phenomena of El NiÃÆ'  ± o and La NiÃÆ'  ± a also affect rain along the Great Basin, bringing an occasional drought and flood cycle. The largest recent flood in Salt Lake City occurred in 1983. Fueled by powerful El Nià ± o, an enormous snowpack caused massive flooding and damage. City Creek exploded from an underground diversion and flooded the city. Some roads, such as State Street and 1300 South, are converted into a makeshift river to accommodate overflowing creeks. Floods also occurred in 1987, when the Great Salt Lake reached its maximum water level. A 2010 study showed that this record event occurred during a period of three unique overlapping climate cycles that are unique in the region.
Significant mid-winter temperature inflation is common in the Salt Lake Valley. These inversions, which often last for several days and weeks, are most prominent in the middle of winter, although milder inversions sometimes occur during other seasons. Inversion of winter temperatures leads to cold, misty and foggy droughts, with bright and rather warm conditions prevailing in the surrounding mountains. Temperature inversions trap the valley air pollutants, which often rise to unhealthy levels. Humidity is just high enough and the temperature is cool enough for the fog to occur during the middle of winter, although fog and haze can be found throughout the year. Inversion occurs when a strong area of ​​high pressure remains parked over the Great Basin. It usually takes a cold front to force or break high pressure. As a result, inversion rarely occurs in spring and autumn, when weather takes on a more progressive pattern, with frequent moving fronts. Such repeated and continuous inversion patterns follow a unique time scale of about 30 days, providing a means for long-term weather prediction. Predictions such as persistent inversion of up to 30 days have been made operational.
Tornadoes are also relatively uncommon. However, there is at least one destructive tornado in town. The Salt Lake City Tornado August 11, 1999, which killed one person and wounded 60 people, resulted in only the second death of a tornado in Utah, and caused damage of about $ 500 million. As a result of the extended drought pattern, Salt Lake City built several reservoirs to collect excess water during the flood period and provide water during drought conditions. In addition, the artesian and water wells extracted from Utah Lake miles to the south serve as an alternative water source for the city. [6]
Current weather events
Utah was in a consistent drought from late 1998 to 2004, although experts warn that the drought-breaking conditions experienced in 2004 and 2005 could actually only be a pause in longer-term drought patterns. July 2003 recorded the hottest month in Salt Lake City. 2003 overall was the second warmest year on record, and recorded the second hottest record of January, August, and October, but with the hottest month (July). January 2003 saw record high January temperatures of 63 Â ° F (17 Â ° C) and record snow in January low (trail). That winter was the sixth hottest and least covered in the third snow. May 2003 also set a high temperature record of May 99 Â ° F (37 Â ° C) on two consecutive days. July 2002 also saw a record high temperature of 107 Â ° F (41 Â ° C), while July 2003 saw a record high minimum temperature (80 Â ° F, 27 Â ° C) and a record 100 degrees Celsius. (July contribution 10 of 24 summer days was over 100 degrees).
At the end of December 2003, a massive snowstorm poured over 18 inches (460 mm) of snow across the valley, with up to 40Ã, (1,000 mm) in high stool areas and up to 100Ã, "(2,500 mm) in Wasatch Distance. From 25-29 December, the official station sees 21.9 inches (56 cm). This blizzard also caused widespread power outages. Accompanied by the next snowstorm and the very cold January and February, the snow from this storm remained on the ground for the rest of winter. From 3 to 26 January, Salt Lake City spent a significant amount of time below freezing. January and February are both very cold, but this was followed by the fourth hottest March, which also hit a record high in March.
Before 2005, 1998 was the last year to see above average rainfall. Close to snowpacks with record settings in the mountains during the 2004 to 2005 season, as well as torrential rains, ended the drought almost across the state. Heavy winters and spring rains cause flooding throughout the state. In late January, heavy rains overflowed the Santa Clara River in Washington County in the southwest corner of the state, destroying several homes in Ivins, Santa Clara, and Saint George, and essentially cutting out the small town of Gunlock. Heavy rains in late April caused massive but small floods in northern Utah.
Heat returned in the summer of 2006, with July 2006 being the second warmest July on record. The summer of 2006 (June-August) closed as the fourth hottest record, only in August close to the average. January 2007 became the coldest month since December 1990, and January was the coldest since 1978. April 29, 2007, saw record highs April 89 ° F. Snow level in ski resorts was near record lows. It became one of the driest springs recorded in Salt Lake City.
The heat returned again in the summer of 2007, with July 2007 breaking the previously mentioned July 2003 record. July 2007 also set a record for the highest average monthly minimum temperature. December 2007 became the wettest third record. The snowfall is also unusually high throughout the winter of 2007-2008 because the snow comes at an incredible speed often. The total snow just ended slightly below the 2003-2004 total without a huge snowstorm to raise the total. Spring 2008 was once again dry but very cold. Heat back that summer once again and July 2008 became the fifth hottest month on record.
Note
References
- Climate chart, taken in November 2004
External links
- National Weather Service - Salt Lake City
- Climatic summary
- Detailed climate statistics
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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