Harrold (12 mi SSW), South Dakota climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Harrold (12 mi SSW)'s normal year runs from 3°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 18.6 inches of precipitation and 40 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.8°C, January lows of −16°C, July highs of 31°C, 473 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationHarrold (12 mi SSW)
- Station IDUSC00393608
- Location44.36°N 99.80°W
- Elevation1,701 ft (519 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Harrold (12 mi SSW) is 57°F and the normal low 28°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 12%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Harrold (12 mi SSW).
- Jan 27° 3°
- Feb 32° 8°
- Mar 44° 19°
- Apr 58° 29°
- May 69° 41°
- Jun 79° 53°
- Jul 87° 58°
- Aug 86° 56°
- Sep 78° 46°
- Oct 61° 31°
- Nov 44° 18°
- Dec 31° 7°
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 Harrold (12 mi SSW) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 3°F. The most precipitation falls in June (3.30 in), the least in February (0.44 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 27°F | 3°F | 15.2°F | 0.49 | 4.8 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 32°F | 8°F | 19.9°F | 0.44 | 7.4 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 44°F | 19°F | 31.5°F | 0.82 | 5.4 | 3 | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 58°F | 29°F | 43.2°F | 1.93 | 7.0 | 6 | <1 | 19 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 69°F | 41°F | 55.0°F | 2.73 | 0.0 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 79°F | 53°F | 65.9°F | 3.30 | 0.0 | 8 | 3 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| July | 87°F | 58°F | 72.6°F | 2.68 | 0.0 | 6 | 12 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 86°F | 56°F | 70.7°F | 1.93 | 0.0 | 5 | 10 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 78°F | 46°F | 61.5°F | 1.80 | 0.0 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 61°F | 31°F | 46.0°F | 1.44 | 0.6 | 4 | 1 | 16 | 11 h |
| November | 44°F | 18°F | 31.1°F | 0.54 | 6.8 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 31°F | 7°F | 19.1°F | 0.54 | 8.0 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 58°F | 31°F | 44.3°F | 18.64 | 40.0 | 56 | 32 | 189 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −3°C | −16°C | −9.3°C | 12 mm | 12 cm |
| February | 0°C | −14°C | −6.7°C | 11 mm | 19 cm |
| March | 7°C | −7°C | −0.3°C | 21 mm | 14 cm |
| April | 14°C | −2°C | 6.2°C | 49 mm | 18 cm |
| May | 21°C | 5°C | 12.8°C | 69 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 26°C | 11°C | 18.8°C | 84 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 31°C | 15°C | 22.6°C | 68 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 13°C | 21.5°C | 49 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 25°C | 8°C | 16.4°C | 46 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 16°C | −1°C | 7.8°C | 37 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 7°C | −8°C | −0.5°C | 14 mm | 17 cm |
| December | −1°C | −14°C | −7.2°C | 14 mm | 20 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00393608; 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 Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June and September. Of those, September 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 USC00393608.
When is the last frost at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
In Harrold (12 mi SSW), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 17 in half of years and after May 31 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 24 in half of years and before September 10 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 171 year in 10 after May 31; 9 in 10 after May 4
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 241 year in 10 before September 10; 9 in 10 before October 6
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 129 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 146 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 8 in half of springs and before October 2 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Harrold (12 mi SSW) in zone 4b in ZIP code 57536, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in South Dakota · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00393608; 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 Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
In a normal year in Harrold (12 mi SSW), 32 days a year reach 90°F (4 of them 100°F or more), 189 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 56 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 32a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 4a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 189a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 66high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 56a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 15a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1963) is 113°F, on July 10, 1976; the lowest is −44°F, on February 9, 1994.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1971, with 20.58 in; the snowiest season is 1985–86, with 91.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00393608; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00393608. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Harrold (12 mi SSW), 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (86%) and December the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 2.0 |
| February | 79% | 3.0 |
| March | 72% | 3.9 |
| April | 72% | 5.0 |
| May | 74% | 5.9 |
| June | 80% | 6.7 |
| July | 86% | 6.9 |
| August | 83% | 5.7 |
| September | 81% | 4.5 |
| October | 74% | 3.0 |
| November | 74% | 2.0 |
| December | 71% | 1.5 |
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 Harrold (12 mi SSW) record?
A normal year at Harrold (12 mi SSW) brings 8,161 heating degree days, 52% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 657 cooling degree days, 28% 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 2,533 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,544 | 0 |
| February | 1,263 | 0 |
| March | 1,039 | 0 |
| April | 656 | 1 |
| May | 330 | 20 |
| June | 78 | 105 |
| July | 15 | 250 |
| August | 29 | 206 |
| September | 176 | 73 |
| October | 594 | 3 |
| November | 1,016 | 0 |
| December | 1,423 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,161 | 657 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00393608. 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 Harrold (12 mi SSW)'s climate compare?
Harrold (12 mi SSW) is warmer than 31 of the 100 places with their own NOAA record in South Dakota, and wetter than 19. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.3°F is warmer than 17%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Harrold (12 mi SSW) is Dfa: continental, no dry season, 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 Harrold (12 mi SSW) 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.
- Blunt, SD334 people · 14 mi NW
- Harrold, SD98 people · 12 mi N
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 Harrold (12 mi SSW)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
January, with a normal high of 27°F and a normal low of 3°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 58°F at night).
Does it snow at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
Yes: 40 inches in a normal year, falling on 15 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (8.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
June, with 3.30 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.44 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Harrold (12 mi SSW) in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Harrold (12 mi SSW) in zone 4b in ZIP code 57536, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Harrold (12 mi SSW)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 17; in one year in ten it comes after May 31. Waiting until May 31 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- South Dakota climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Stephan, SD19 miles from this station, 44.6°F a year
- Highmore, SD21 miles from this station, 45.8°F a year
- Pierre, SD24 miles from this station, 47.0°F a year
- Lake Sharpe Project, SD27 miles from this station, 46.7°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made