Karval, Colorado climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Karval's normal year runs from 16°F December nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 14.1 inches of precipitation and 21 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 10.1°C, December lows of −9°C, July highs of 32°C, 358 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationKarval
- Station IDUSC00054444
- Location38.74°N 103.54°W
- Elevation5,075 ft (1,547 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Karval is 64°F and the normal low 31°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 11%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Karval.
- Jan 46° 15°
- Feb 48° 17°
- Mar 56° 25°
- Apr 64° 32°
- May 73° 42°
- Jun 84° 52°
- Jul 89° 58°
- Aug 86° 56°
- Sep 80° 47°
- Oct 67° 34°
- Nov 54° 23°
- Dec 45° 16°
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 Karval each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 16°F. The most precipitation falls in July (2.98 in), the least in January (0.18 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46°F | 15°F | 30.4°F | 0.18 | 3.1 | 2 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 48°F | 17°F | 32.2°F | 0.24 | 3.1 | 3 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 56°F | 25°F | 40.6°F | 0.68 | 4.0 | 4 | <1 | 25 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 64°F | 32°F | 47.6°F | 1.26 | 2.4 | 5 | <1 | 15 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 73°F | 42°F | 57.2°F | 1.93 | 0.2 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 84°F | 52°F | 67.9°F | 1.85 | 0.0 | 7 | 8 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 89°F | 58°F | 73.3°F | 2.98 | 0.0 | 9 | 17 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 86°F | 56°F | 71.1°F | 2.34 | 0.0 | 8 | 12 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 80°F | 47°F | 63.3°F | 1.09 | 0.0 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 67°F | 34°F | 50.3°F | 0.99 | 2.1 | 4 | <1 | 11 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 54°F | 23°F | 38.6°F | 0.31 | 2.7 | 3 | <1 | 26 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 45°F | 16°F | 30.2°F | 0.23 | 3.4 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 66°F | 35°F | 50.2°F | 14.08 | 21.0 | 57 | 43 | 169 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8°C | −9°C | −0.9°C | 5 mm | 8 cm |
| February | 9°C | −8°C | 0.1°C | 6 mm | 8 cm |
| March | 14°C | −4°C | 4.8°C | 17 mm | 10 cm |
| April | 18°C | 0°C | 8.7°C | 32 mm | 6 cm |
| May | 23°C | 5°C | 14.0°C | 49 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 29°C | 11°C | 19.9°C | 47 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 32°C | 14°C | 22.9°C | 76 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 13°C | 21.7°C | 59 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 27°C | 8°C | 17.4°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 19°C | 1°C | 10.2°C | 25 mm | 5 cm |
| November | 12°C | −5°C | 3.7°C | 8 mm | 7 cm |
| December | 7°C | −9°C | −1.0°C | 6 mm | 9 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00054444; 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 Karval?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, September and October. Of those, October 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 USC00054444.
When is the last frost at Karval?
In Karval, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 9 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 25 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 91 year in 10 after May 23; 9 in 10 after April 28
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 61 year in 10 before September 25; 9 in 10 before October 18
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 149 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 167 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 30 in half of springs and before October 14 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Karval in zone 5b in ZIP code 80823, 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 6a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (16 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Colorado · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00054444; 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 Karval?
In a normal year in Karval, 43 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 169 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 57 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 43a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 169a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 21high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 57a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 9a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00054444.
How sunny is it at Karval?
Over a year 84% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Karval, 5.1 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (89%) and February the cloudiest (76%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 80% | 2.7 |
| February | 76% | 3.5 |
| March | 81% | 4.9 |
| April | 80% | 6.1 |
| May | 82% | 7.0 |
| June | 87% | 7.6 |
| July | 89% | 7.4 |
| August | 89% | 6.7 |
| September | 88% | 5.5 |
| October | 84% | 4.1 |
| November | 84% | 3.0 |
| December | 79% | 2.4 |
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 Karval record?
A normal year at Karval brings 6,040 heating degree days, 12% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 687 cooling degree days, 24% 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 2,823 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,073 | 0 |
| February | 917 | 0 |
| March | 757 | 0 |
| April | 522 | 1 |
| May | 263 | 21 |
| June | 44 | 131 |
| July | 6 | 261 |
| August | 13 | 202 |
| September | 119 | 68 |
| October | 459 | 3 |
| November | 792 | 0 |
| December | 1,077 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,040 | 687 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00054444. 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 Karval been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 52.5°F, 2.3°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 50.2°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2022 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 50.6°F | +0.4°F | 11.63 | 26.6 |
| 2023 | 51.0°F | +0.8°F | 17.73 | 22.5 |
| 2024 | 53.0°F | +2.8°F | 14.22 | 33.1 |
| 2025 | 52.5°F | +2.3°F | 13.00 | 8.2 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00054444. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Karval's climate compare?
Karval is warmer than 78 of the 125 places with their own NOAA record in Colorado, and wetter than 40. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 50.2°F is warmer than 41%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Karval 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 Karval's climate
What is the coldest month at Karval?
December, with a normal high of 45°F and a normal low of 16°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 58°F at night).
Does it snow at Karval?
Yes: 21 inches in a normal year, falling on 12 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in March (4.0 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Karval?
July, with 2.98 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.18 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Karval in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Karval in zone 5b in ZIP code 80823, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −8°F (16 years, 1991-2020): zone 6a.
How late can frost come at Karval?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 9; 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
- Colorado climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Hugo, CO28 miles from this station, 49.2°F a year
- Wild Horse (6 mi N), CO30 miles from this station, 51.0°F a year
- Rush (1 mi N), CO31 miles from this station, 48.5°F a year
- Matheson, CO31 miles from this station, 48.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made