Long Falls Dam, Maine climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Long Falls Dam's normal year runs from 4°F January nights to 77°F July afternoons, with 43.0 inches of precipitation and 109 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 4.8°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 25°C, 1,093 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationLong Falls Dam
- Station IDUSC00174781
- Location45.22°N 70.20°W
- Elevation1,160 ft (354 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Long Falls Dam is 50°F and the normal low 33°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 43%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Long Falls Dam.
- Jan 23° 4°
- Feb 26° 5°
- Mar 35° 14°
- Apr 47° 28°
- May 62° 40°
- Jun 72° 50°
- Jul 77° 55°
- Aug 76° 53°
- Sep 68° 46°
- Oct 54° 35°
- Nov 40° 25°
- Dec 29° 14°
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 Long Falls Dam each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 77°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 4°F. The most precipitation falls in October (4.61 in), the least in February (2.43 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23°F | 4°F | 13.7°F | 2.79 | 22.7 | 12 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 26°F | 5°F | 15.5°F | 2.43 | 22.9 | 10 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 35°F | 14°F | 24.4°F | 3.04 | 22.2 | 11 | <1 | 30 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 47°F | 28°F | 37.6°F | 3.79 | 7.6 | 12 | <1 | 24 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 62°F | 40°F | 51.0°F | 3.61 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | 6 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 72°F | 50°F | 60.6°F | 4.45 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 77°F | 55°F | 65.9°F | 3.96 | 0.0 | 13 | <1 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 76°F | 53°F | 64.2°F | 3.57 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 68°F | 46°F | 56.8°F | 3.23 | 0.0 | 11 | <1 | 2 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 54°F | 35°F | 44.6°F | 4.61 | 2.6 | 13 | <1 | 14 | 11 h |
| November | 40°F | 25°F | 32.8°F | 3.80 | 7.2 | 13 | <1 | 25 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 29°F | 14°F | 21.4°F | 3.76 | 23.9 | 14 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 51°F | 31°F | 40.7°F | 43.04 | 109.1 | 150 | 1 | 191 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −5°C | −15°C | −10.2°C | 71 mm | 58 cm |
| February | −3°C | −15°C | −9.2°C | 62 mm | 58 cm |
| March | 2°C | −10°C | −4.2°C | 77 mm | 56 cm |
| April | 8°C | −2°C | 3.1°C | 96 mm | 19 cm |
| May | 17°C | 4°C | 10.6°C | 92 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 22°C | 10°C | 15.9°C | 113 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 25°C | 13°C | 18.8°C | 101 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 24°C | 12°C | 17.9°C | 91 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 20°C | 8°C | 13.8°C | 82 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 12°C | 2°C | 7.0°C | 117 mm | 7 cm |
| November | 5°C | −4°C | 0.4°C | 97 mm | 18 cm |
| December | −2°C | −10°C | −5.9°C | 96 mm | 61 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00174781; 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 Long Falls Dam?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (11).
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 USC00174781.
When is the last frost at Long Falls Dam?
In Long Falls Dam, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 13 in half of years and after May 27 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 30 in half of years and before September 15 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 131 year in 10 after May 27; 9 in 10 after April 30
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 301 year in 10 before September 15; 9 in 10 before October 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 138 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 163 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 1 in half of springs and before October 12 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Long Falls Dam in zone 4b in ZIP code 04961, 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 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −21°F (24 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Maine · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00174781; 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 Long Falls Dam?
In a normal year in Long Falls Dam, 1 day a year reaches 90°F, 191 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 150 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 191a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 88high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 150a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 27a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1951) is 98°F, on August 3, 1975; the lowest is −37°F, on January 1, 1972.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2005, with 56.67 in; the snowiest season is 1968–69, with 238.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00174781; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00174781. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Long Falls Dam?
Over a year 66% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Long Falls Dam, 3.4 kWh per square metre a day. September is the sunniest month (72%) and December the cloudiest (51%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 59% | 1.4 |
| February | 62% | 2.2 |
| March | 65% | 3.4 |
| April | 65% | 4.4 |
| May | 64% | 5.0 |
| June | 67% | 5.5 |
| July | 71% | 5.5 |
| August | 72% | 4.9 |
| September | 72% | 3.9 |
| October | 60% | 2.3 |
| November | 56% | 1.4 |
| December | 51% | 1.0 |
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 Long Falls Dam record?
A normal year at Long Falls Dam brings 9,011 heating degree days, 68% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 194 cooling degree days, 79% 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 1,643 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,589 | 0 |
| February | 1,385 | 0 |
| March | 1,260 | 0 |
| April | 824 | 0 |
| May | 438 | 4 |
| June | 166 | 34 |
| July | 55 | 82 |
| August | 81 | 57 |
| September | 263 | 17 |
| October | 635 | 1 |
| November | 966 | 0 |
| December | 1,352 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 9,011 | 194 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00174781. 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 Long Falls Dam's climate compare?
Long Falls Dam is warmer than 5 of the 42 places with their own NOAA record in Maine, and wetter than 10. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 40.7°F is warmer than 7%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Long Falls 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.
Questions about Long Falls Dam's climate
What is the coldest month at Long Falls Dam?
January, with a normal high of 23°F and a normal low of 4°F. The warmest is July (77°F by day, 55°F at night).
Does it snow at Long Falls Dam?
Yes: 109 inches in a normal year, falling on 55 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (23.9 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Long Falls Dam?
October, with 4.61 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.43 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Long Falls Dam in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Long Falls Dam in zone 4b in ZIP code 04961, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −21°F (24 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come at Long Falls Dam?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 13; in one year in ten it comes after May 27. Waiting until May 27 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Maine climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Eustis, ME14 miles from this station, 39.1°F a year
- Rangeley, ME28 miles from this station, 39.3°F a year
- Jackman, ME28 miles from this station, 39.2°F a year
- Madison, ME33 miles from this station, 43.1°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made