Francis E Walter Dam, Pennsylvania climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Francis E Walter Dam's normal year runs from 16°F January nights to 79°F July afternoons, with 48.8 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 8.1°C, January lows of −9°C, July highs of 26°C, 1,241 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationFrancis E Walter Dam
- Station IDUSC00363018
- Location41.12°N 75.73°W
- Elevation1,509 ft (460 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Francis E Walter Dam is 56°F and the normal low 36°F.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Francis E Walter Dam.
- Jan 31° 16°
- Feb 35° 17°
- Mar 43° 24°
- Apr 57° 34°
- May 67° 45°
- Jun 74° 54°
- Jul 79° 58°
- Aug 77° 56°
- Sep 71° 49°
- Oct 59° 38°
- Nov 47° 30°
- Dec 36° 22°
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 Francis E Walter Dam each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 79°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 16°F. The most precipitation falls in September (5.24 in), the least in February (2.60 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31°F | 16°F | 23.5°F | 3.13 | – | <1 | 29 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 35°F | 17°F | 25.8°F | 2.60 | – | <1 | 27 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 43°F | 24°F | 33.3°F | 3.65 | – | <1 | 26 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 57°F | 34°F | 45.4°F | 4.06 | – | <1 | 16 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 67°F | 45°F | 56.2°F | 4.17 | – | <1 | 4 | 14 h 30 min |
| June | 74°F | 54°F | 64.0°F | 4.81 | – | 1 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| July | 79°F | 58°F | 68.3°F | 4.49 | – | 2 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 77°F | 56°F | 66.8°F | 4.55 | – | 1 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 71°F | 49°F | 59.8°F | 5.24 | – | <1 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 59°F | 38°F | 48.7°F | 4.69 | – | <1 | 11 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 47°F | 30°F | 38.2°F | 3.61 | – | <1 | 22 | 10 h |
| December | 36°F | 22°F | 29.0°F | 3.84 | – | <1 | 28 | 9 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 56°F | 37°F | 46.6°F | 48.84 | – | 4 | 163 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0°C | −9°C | −4.7°C | 80 mm |
| February | 2°C | −8°C | −3.4°C | 66 mm |
| March | 6°C | −5°C | 0.7°C | 93 mm |
| April | 14°C | 1°C | 7.4°C | 103 mm |
| May | 19°C | 7°C | 13.4°C | 106 mm |
| June | 23°C | 12°C | 17.8°C | 122 mm |
| July | 26°C | 14°C | 20.2°C | 114 mm |
| August | 25°C | 13°C | 19.3°C | 116 mm |
| September | 22°C | 9°C | 15.4°C | 133 mm |
| October | 15°C | 3°C | 9.3°C | 119 mm |
| November | 8°C | −1°C | 3.4°C | 92 mm |
| December | 2°C | −6°C | −1.7°C | 98 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Avoca (15 miles away), gets 45 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00363018; 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 Francis E Walter Dam?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September.
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 USC00363018.
When is the last frost at Francis E Walter Dam?
In Francis E Walter Dam, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 7 in half of years and after May 23 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 6 in half of years and before September 22 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 71 year in 10 after May 23; 9 in 10 after April 22
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 61 year in 10 before September 22; 9 in 10 before October 22
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 153 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 176 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 24 in half of springs and before October 19 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Francis E Walter Dam in zone 6a in ZIP code 18661, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Pennsylvania · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00363018; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 Francis E Walter Dam?
In a normal year in Francis E Walter Dam, 4 days a year reach 90°F and 163 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 4a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 163a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 41high of 32°F or less
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1959) is 96°F, on July 4, 1966; the lowest is −28°F, on February 18, 1979.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2018, with 70.75 in; the snowiest season is 1969–70, with 89.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00363018; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00363018. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Francis E Walter Dam?
Over a year 69% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Francis E Walter Dam, 3.7 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (76%) and December the cloudiest (56%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 60% | 1.6 |
| February | 63% | 2.5 |
| March | 64% | 3.5 |
| April | 66% | 4.5 |
| May | 68% | 5.2 |
| June | 72% | 5.7 |
| July | 76% | 5.8 |
| August | 75% | 5.1 |
| September | 73% | 4.1 |
| October | 65% | 2.7 |
| November | 64% | 1.9 |
| December | 56% | 1.3 |
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 Francis E Walter Dam record?
A normal year at Francis E Walter Dam brings 7,024 heating degree days, 31% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 345 cooling degree days, 62% fewer 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 2,209 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,286 | 0 |
| February | 1,099 | 0 |
| March | 981 | 0 |
| April | 591 | 3 |
| May | 292 | 19 |
| June | 94 | 65 |
| July | 28 | 130 |
| August | 41 | 97 |
| September | 185 | 29 |
| October | 507 | 2 |
| November | 804 | 0 |
| December | 1,116 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,024 | 345 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00363018. 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 Francis E Walter Dam been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 47.1°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 46.6°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48.2°F | +1.6°F | 49.65 |
| 2022 | 47.0°F | +0.4°F | 48.59 |
| 2023 | 49.0°F | +2.4°F | – |
| 2024 | 49.2°F | +2.6°F | 48.20 |
| 2025 | 47.1°F | +0.5°F | – |
Over 31 complete years from 1964 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 6.7°F per century (+0.37°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00363018; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Francis E Walter Dam's climate compare?
Francis E Walter Dam is warmer than 11 of the 108 places with their own NOAA record in Pennsylvania, and wetter than 91. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 46.6°F is warmer than 26%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Francis E Walter Dam 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 Francis E Walter Dam share this climate record?
20 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.
- Mountain Top, PA11,856 people · 9 mi W
- Nanticoke, PA10,730 people · 15 mi W
- Freeland, PA3,863 people · 11 mi SW
- Ashley, PA2,632 people · 11 mi NW
- Towamensing Trails, PA2,032 people · 11 mi SE
- Beech Mountain Lakes, PA1,920 people · 12 mi SW
- White Haven, PA1,197 people · 5 mi SW
- Sugar Notch, PA1,009 people · 12 mi NW
- Nuangola, PA682 people · 13 mi W
- Holiday Pocono, PA587 people · 9 mi SE
- West Nanticoke, PA582 people · 16 mi NW
- Laurel Run, PA571 people · 9 mi NW
- Warrior Run, PA538 people · 12 mi NW
- Sheatown, PA533 people · 16 mi W
- Penn Lake Park, PA379 people · 2 mi W
- Hickory Hills, PA328 people · 8 mi SW
- Bear Creek Village, PA305 people · 5 mi N
- East Side, PA255 people · 4 mi SW
- Jeddo, PA109 people · 12 mi SW
- Albrightsville, PA93 people · 10 mi SE
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 Francis E Walter Dam's climate
What is the coldest month at Francis E Walter Dam?
January, with a normal high of 31°F and a normal low of 16°F. The warmest is July (79°F by day, 58°F at night).
Does it snow at Francis E Walter Dam?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for the station; the nearest record that keeps one, Avoca (15 miles away), records 45 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month at Francis E Walter Dam?
September, with 5.24 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.60 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Francis E Walter Dam in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Francis E Walter Dam in zone 6a in ZIP code 18661, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Francis E Walter Dam?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 7; in one year in ten it comes after May 23. Waiting until May 23 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Pennsylvania climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Avoca, PA15 miles from this station, 51.3°F a year
- Mount Pocono, PA18 miles from this station, 45.8°F a year
- Lehighton, PA21 miles from this station, 50.0°F a year
- East Stroudsburg, PA28 miles from this station, 50.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made