Gibraltar Dam #2, California climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Gibraltar Dam #2's normal year runs from 34°F December nights to 96°F August afternoons, with 28.6 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 16.3°C, December lows of 1°C, August highs of 35°C, 727 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationGibraltar Dam #2
- Station IDUSC00043402
- Location34.52°N 119.68°W
- Elevation1,558 ft (475 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Gibraltar Dam #2 is 82°F and the normal low 44°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 8%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Gibraltar Dam #2.
- Jan 66° 36°
- Feb 67° 36°
- Mar 70° 38°
- Apr 76° 41°
- May 80° 46°
- Jun 88° 49°
- Jul 94° 55°
- Aug 96° 54°
- Sep 91° 51°
- Oct 83° 45°
- Nov 73° 40°
- Dec 64° 34°
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 Gibraltar Dam #2 each month?
August is the warmest month, with normal highs of 96°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 34°F. The most precipitation falls in February (7.56 in), the least in August (0.00 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66°F | 36°F | 51.2°F | 7.06 | 8 | <1 | 9 | 10 h |
| February | 67°F | 36°F | 51.7°F | 7.56 | 10 | <1 | 9 | 11 h |
| March | 70°F | 38°F | 54.3°F | 4.68 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 76°F | 41°F | 58.1°F | 1.65 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 13 h |
| May | 80°F | 46°F | 63.0°F | 0.68 | 2 | 6 | <1 | 14 h |
| June | 88°F | 49°F | 68.6°F | 0.05 | <1 | 15 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 94°F | 55°F | 74.4°F | 0.07 | <1 | 24 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 96°F | 54°F | 75.0°F | 0.00 | <1 | 26 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 91°F | 51°F | 71.2°F | 0.09 | 1 | 20 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 83°F | 45°F | 64.1°F | 1.11 | 2 | 11 | <1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 73°F | 40°F | 56.7°F | 1.48 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 64°F | 34°F | 48.9°F | 4.19 | 6 | <1 | 12 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 79°F | 44°F | 61.4°F | 28.62 | 42 | 109 | 39 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19°C | 2°C | 10.7°C | 179 mm |
| February | 19°C | 2°C | 10.9°C | 192 mm |
| March | 21°C | 4°C | 12.4°C | 119 mm |
| April | 24°C | 5°C | 14.5°C | 42 mm |
| May | 27°C | 8°C | 17.2°C | 17 mm |
| June | 31°C | 9°C | 20.3°C | 1 mm |
| July | 34°C | 13°C | 23.6°C | 2 mm |
| August | 35°C | 12°C | 23.9°C | 0 mm |
| September | 33°C | 11°C | 21.8°C | 2 mm |
| October | 29°C | 7°C | 17.8°C | 28 mm |
| November | 23°C | 4°C | 13.7°C | 38 mm |
| December | 18°C | 1°C | 9.4°C | 106 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Santa Barbara station (7 miles away), gets 0 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00043402; 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 Gibraltar Dam #2?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in January, February, March, April, May, October and November. Of those, May has the fewest days with rain (2).
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 USC00043402.
When is the last frost at Gibraltar Dam #2?
In Gibraltar Dam #2, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after March 20 in half of years and after April 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 27 in half of years and before November 4 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
- March 201 year in 10 after April 16; 9 in 10 after February 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 271 year in 10 before November 4; 9 in 10 before December 12
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 250 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 309 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after February 8 in half of springs and before December 13 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Gibraltar Dam #2 in zone 10b in ZIP code 93103, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in California · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00043402; 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 Gibraltar Dam #2?
In a normal year in Gibraltar Dam #2, 109 days a year reach 90°F (32 of them 100°F or more), 39 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 42 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 109a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 32a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 39a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 42a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00043402.
How sunny is it at Gibraltar Dam #2?
Over a year 88% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Gibraltar Dam #2, 5.5 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (93%) and February the cloudiest (81%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 82% | 3.1 |
| February | 81% | 4.0 |
| March | 83% | 5.2 |
| April | 87% | 6.6 |
| May | 88% | 7.5 |
| June | 89% | 7.9 |
| July | 91% | 7.7 |
| August | 93% | 7.2 |
| September | 92% | 6.1 |
| October | 89% | 4.6 |
| November | 87% | 3.5 |
| December | 82% | 2.8 |
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 Gibraltar Dam #2 record?
A normal year at Gibraltar Dam #2 brings 2,361 heating degree days, 56% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,063 cooling degree days, 17% more than the median (908). Four months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,433 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 430 | 0 |
| February | 374 | 0 |
| March | 334 | 1 |
| April | 216 | 8 |
| May | 109 | 46 |
| June | 26 | 132 |
| July | 4 | 294 |
| August | 2 | 310 |
| September | 16 | 201 |
| October | 91 | 62 |
| November | 260 | 10 |
| December | 499 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 2,361 | 1,063 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00043402. 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 Gibraltar Dam #2's climate compare?
Gibraltar Dam #2 is warmer than 111 of the 219 places with their own NOAA record in California, and wetter than 166. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 61.4°F is warmer than 78%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Gibraltar Dam #2 is Csa: temperate, dry-summer, hot 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 Gibraltar Dam #2 share this climate record?
5 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.
- Carpinteria, CA12,876 people · 14 mi SE
- Montecito, CA8,823 people · 8 mi S
- Mission Canyon, CA2,296 people · 5 mi SW
- Toro Canyon, CA1,736 people · 10 mi SE
- Summerland, CA1,248 people · 9 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 Gibraltar Dam #2's climate
What is the coldest month at Gibraltar Dam #2?
December, with a normal high of 64°F and a normal low of 34°F. The warmest is August (96°F by day, 54°F at night).
Does it snow at Gibraltar Dam #2?
Rarely. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for the station; the nearest record that keeps one, Santa Barbara station (7 miles away), records 0 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month at Gibraltar Dam #2?
February, with 7.56 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is August with 0.00 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Gibraltar Dam #2 in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Gibraltar Dam #2 in zone 10b in ZIP code 93103, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Gibraltar Dam #2?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after March 20; in one year in ten it comes after April 16. Waiting until April 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- California climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Santa Barbara, CA11 miles from this station, 59.3°F a year
- Cachuma Lake, CA17 miles from this station, 60.1°F a year
- Ojai, CA26 miles from this station, 60.1°F a year
- New Cuyama, CA29 miles from this station, 59.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made