Canyonlands-The Needles, Utah climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Canyonlands-The Needles's normal year runs from 17°F January nights to 95°F July afternoons, with 8.3 inches of precipitation and 11 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 12.0°C, January lows of −8°C, July highs of 35°C, 212 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationCanyonlands-The Needles
- Station IDUSC00421168
- Location38.17°N 109.76°W
- Elevation4,906 ft (1,495 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Canyonlands-The Needles is 66°F and the normal low 35°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 16%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Canyonlands-The Needles.
- Jan 42° 17°
- Feb 49° 23°
- Mar 59° 30°
- Apr 67° 36°
- May 77° 46°
- Jun 89° 56°
- Jul 95° 63°
- Aug 92° 61°
- Sep 84° 51°
- Oct 70° 38°
- Nov 55° 26°
- Dec 42° 18°
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 Canyonlands-The Needles each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 95°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 17°F. The most precipitation falls in October (1.14 in), the least in June (0.29 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42°F | 17°F | 29.7°F | 0.43 | 2.0 | 4 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 49°F | 23°F | 35.8°F | 0.63 | 2.4 | 4 | <1 | 24 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 59°F | 30°F | 44.5°F | 0.64 | 2.2 | 5 | <1 | 20 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 67°F | 36°F | 51.6°F | 0.66 | 0.3 | 4 | <1 | 8 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 77°F | 46°F | 61.8°F | 0.70 | 0.0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 89°F | 56°F | 72.8°F | 0.29 | 0.0 | 2 | 18 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 95°F | 63°F | 79.1°F | 0.87 | 0.0 | 5 | 27 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 92°F | 61°F | 76.4°F | 0.96 | 0.0 | 6 | 23 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 84°F | 51°F | 67.2°F | 0.85 | 0.0 | 5 | 8 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 70°F | 38°F | 53.6°F | 1.14 | 0.1 | 5 | <1 | 7 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 55°F | 26°F | 40.4°F | 0.62 | 1.2 | 4 | <1 | 22 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 42°F | 18°F | 30.0°F | 0.56 | 3.0 | 4 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 68°F | 39°F | 53.6°F | 8.35 | 11.2 | 55 | 78 | 140 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6°C | −8°C | −1.3°C | 11 mm | 5 cm |
| February | 9°C | −5°C | 2.1°C | 16 mm | 6 cm |
| March | 15°C | −1°C | 6.9°C | 16 mm | 6 cm |
| April | 19°C | 2°C | 10.9°C | 17 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 25°C | 8°C | 16.6°C | 18 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 32°C | 14°C | 22.7°C | 7 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 35°C | 17°C | 26.2°C | 22 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 33°C | 16°C | 24.7°C | 24 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 29°C | 10°C | 19.6°C | 22 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 21°C | 3°C | 12.0°C | 29 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 13°C | −3°C | 4.7°C | 16 mm | 3 cm |
| December | 6°C | −8°C | −1.1°C | 14 mm | 8 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00421168; 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 Canyonlands-The Needles?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, April has the fewest days with rain (4).
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 USC00421168.
When is the last frost at Canyonlands-The Needles?
In Canyonlands-The Needles, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 30 in half of years and after May 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 11 in half of years and before September 27 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
- April 301 year in 10 after May 16; 9 in 10 after April 16
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 111 year in 10 before September 27; 9 in 10 before October 25
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 164 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 187 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 18 in half of springs and before October 22 in half of autumns.
By the USDA's method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in plant hardiness zone 7a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches 3°F (22 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Utah · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00421168; 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 Canyonlands-The Needles?
In a normal year in Canyonlands-The Needles, 78 days a year reach 90°F (12 of them 100°F or more), 140 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 55 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 78a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 12a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 140a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 8high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 55a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 4a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1965) is 107°F, on June 29, 2013; the lowest is −16°F, on January 6, 1971.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2015, with 13.65 in; the snowiest season is 1984–85, with 43.2 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00421168; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00421168. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Canyonlands-The Needles?
Over a year 85% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Canyonlands-The Needles, 5.3 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (91%) and December the cloudiest (76%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 2.7 |
| February | 77% | 3.6 |
| March | 83% | 5.2 |
| April | 84% | 6.5 |
| May | 86% | 7.5 |
| June | 91% | 8.3 |
| July | 88% | 7.5 |
| August | 87% | 6.7 |
| September | 89% | 5.8 |
| October | 87% | 4.3 |
| November | 84% | 3.1 |
| December | 76% | 2.3 |
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 Canyonlands-The Needles record?
A normal year at Canyonlands-The Needles brings 5,366 heating degree days, 0% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,231 cooling degree days, 36% more than the median (908). Seven months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 3,628 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,094 | 0 |
| February | 818 | 0 |
| March | 636 | 0 |
| April | 405 | 3 |
| May | 159 | 59 |
| June | 18 | 252 |
| July | 1 | 438 |
| August | 1 | 353 |
| September | 55 | 121 |
| October | 359 | 5 |
| November | 737 | 0 |
| December | 1,085 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 5,366 | 1,231 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00421168. 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.
Have recent years at Canyonlands-The Needles been warmer than normal?
2022 averaged 53.6°F, equal to the 1991-2020 normal of 53.6°F.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 53.6°F | at normal | 8.90 | 13.0 |
Over 35 complete years from 1966 to 2022, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.8°F per century (+0.21°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00421168; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Canyonlands-The Needles's climate compare?
Canyonlands-The Needles is warmer than 82 of the 97 places with their own NOAA record in Utah, and wetter than 15. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 53.6°F is warmer than 55%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Canyonlands-The Needles is BSk: cold semi-arid steppe. 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.
Questions about Canyonlands-The Needles's climate
What is the coldest month at Canyonlands-The Needles?
January, with a normal high of 42°F and a normal low of 17°F. The warmest is July (95°F by day, 63°F at night).
Does it snow at Canyonlands-The Needles?
Yes: 11 inches in a normal year, falling on 8 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (3.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Canyonlands-The Needles?
October, with 1.14 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is June with 0.29 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Canyonlands-The Needles in?
By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches 3°F (22 years, 1991-2020): zone 7a.
How late can frost come at Canyonlands-The Needles?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 30; in one year in ten it comes after May 16. Waiting until May 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Utah climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Canyonlands-The Neck, UT21 miles from this station, 53.6°F a year
- Hans Flat Ranger Station, UT24 miles from this station, 50.7°F a year
- La Sal, UT29 miles from this station, 48.1°F a year
- Moab, UT30 miles from this station, 57.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made