Barnard, Maine climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Barnard's normal year runs from 5°F January nights to 78°F July afternoons, with 48.3 inches of precipitation and 93 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 5.8°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 26°C, 1,226 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationBarnard
- Station IDUSC00170398
- Location45.29°N 69.15°W
- Elevation545 ft (166 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Barnard is 54°F and the normal low 33°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 41%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Barnard.
- Jan 26° 5°
- Feb 29° 6°
- Mar 38° 17°
- Apr 51° 29°
- May 65° 41°
- Jun 73° 50°
- Jul 78° 56°
- Aug 77° 54°
- Sep 70° 46°
- Oct 57° 35°
- Nov 44° 26°
- Dec 32° 14°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Barnard each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 78°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 5°F. The most precipitation falls in October (5.13 in), the least in February (2.99 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26°F | 5°F | 15.1°F | 3.52 | 21.2 | 10 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 29°F | 6°F | 17.7°F | 2.99 | 21.6 | 9 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 38°F | 17°F | 27.6°F | 3.52 | 17.9 | 10 | <1 | 30 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 51°F | 29°F | 40.3°F | 4.19 | 4.3 | 11 | <1 | 21 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 65°F | 41°F | 52.6°F | 3.92 | 0.0 | 13 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 73°F | 50°F | 61.5°F | 4.60 | 0.0 | 14 | 1 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 78°F | 56°F | 67.0°F | 3.99 | 0.0 | 14 | 1 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 77°F | 54°F | 65.7°F | 4.09 | 0.0 | 13 | 1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 70°F | 46°F | 57.7°F | 3.78 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | 2 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 57°F | 35°F | 45.9°F | 5.13 | 0.9 | 13 | <1 | 14 | 11 h |
| November | 44°F | 26°F | 34.8°F | 4.28 | 5.1 | 12 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 32°F | 14°F | 23.2°F | 4.25 | 21.5 | 12 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 53°F | 32°F | 42.4°F | 48.26 | 92.5 | 142 | 3 | 184 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −4°C | −15°C | −9.4°C | 89 mm | 54 cm |
| February | −2°C | −14°C | −7.9°C | 76 mm | 55 cm |
| March | 3°C | −8°C | −2.4°C | 89 mm | 45 cm |
| April | 11°C | −1°C | 4.6°C | 106 mm | 11 cm |
| May | 18°C | 5°C | 11.4°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 23°C | 10°C | 16.4°C | 117 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 26°C | 13°C | 19.4°C | 101 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 25°C | 12°C | 18.7°C | 104 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 21°C | 8°C | 14.3°C | 96 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | 2°C | 7.7°C | 130 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 7°C | −3°C | 1.6°C | 109 mm | 13 cm |
| December | 0°C | −10°C | −4.9°C | 108 mm | 55 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00170398; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
Which months are mildest at Barnard?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (11).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00170398.
When is the last frost at Barnard?
In Barnard, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 12 in half of years and after May 26 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 1 in half of years and before September 18 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 121 year in 10 after May 26; 9 in 10 after April 30
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 11 year in 10 before September 18; 9 in 10 before October 14
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 141 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 164 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 30 in half of springs and before October 12 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Barnard in zone 5a in ZIP code 04481, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −20°F (18 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Maine · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00170398; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get at Barnard?
In a normal year in Barnard, 3 days a year reach 90°F, 184 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 142 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 3a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 184a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 70high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 142a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 25a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00170398.
How sunny is it at Barnard?
Over a year 68% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Barnard, 3.5 kWh per square metre a day. September is the sunniest month (74%) and December the cloudiest (59%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 1.5 |
| February | 66% | 2.4 |
| March | 69% | 3.6 |
| April | 67% | 4.6 |
| May | 65% | 5.1 |
| June | 67% | 5.5 |
| July | 72% | 5.6 |
| August | 73% | 5.0 |
| September | 74% | 4.0 |
| October | 65% | 2.5 |
| November | 61% | 1.5 |
| December | 59% | 1.1 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How many heating and cooling degree days does Barnard record?
A normal year at Barnard brings 8,434 heating degree days, 57% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 240 cooling degree days, 74% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 1,810 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,548 | 0 |
| February | 1,323 | 0 |
| March | 1,161 | 0 |
| April | 741 | 0 |
| May | 391 | 6 |
| June | 143 | 38 |
| July | 39 | 99 |
| August | 57 | 79 |
| September | 237 | 18 |
| October | 593 | 0 |
| November | 906 | 0 |
| December | 1,296 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,434 | 240 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00170398. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Barnard's climate compare?
Barnard is warmer than 11 of the 42 places with their own NOAA record in Maine, and wetter than 28. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 42.4°F is warmer than 10%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Barnard is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Barnard share this climate record?
2 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Milo, ME2,356 people · 10 mi E
- Brownville Junction, ME559 people · 6 mi NE
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Barnard's climate
What is the coldest month at Barnard?
January, with a normal high of 26°F and a normal low of 5°F. The warmest is July (78°F by day, 56°F at night).
Does it snow at Barnard?
Yes: 93 inches in a normal year, falling on 34 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (21.6 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Barnard?
October, with 5.13 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.99 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Barnard in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Barnard in zone 5a in ZIP code 04481, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −20°F (18 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come at Barnard?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 12; in one year in ten it comes after May 26. Waiting until May 26 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Maine climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Sebec Lake, ME4 miles from this station, 41.4°F a year
- Dover-Foxcroft, ME7 miles from this station, 42.2°F a year
- East Sangerville, ME12 miles from this station, 43.3°F a year
- Greenville, ME25 miles from this station, 41.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made