Meteor Crater, AZ Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Annual temperature and rainfall from NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 normals →; comfort score computed by PlainClimate
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Meteor Crater's primary NOAA station, METEOR CRATER.
The climate verdict for Meteor Crater
Dryness leads the climate profile for Meteor Crater, Arizona, with 12.3 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 56°F. Its climate comfort score of 64/100 (good) lands mid-pack nationally, exceeding 49% of station-mapped location scores.
- 56°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 64/100
- comfort score, above 49% of station-mapped location scores
- 12.3"
- precipitation, annual total
- 176 days
- growing season, frost-free days
Meteor Crater: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00025494 · Meteor Crater, AZ 56°F mean · 12.3" precip
TEMP-MILD · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-MID · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-MILD 56°F
- RANK-UPPER #4,254
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Petrified Fores…
- PRCP-DRY 12.3"
- SWING-MID 41°F
- COMF-MID 64/100
- LOAD-HEAT 4,492 HDD
- STN-1 USC00025494
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Petrified Forest National Park, AZ (+ 0 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every AZ station list.
- Meteor Crater (this station) 56°F
- Cold Kingston, AR 56°F
- Hot Placitas, NM 56°F
- Near Petrified Fores…, AZ 56°F
- Near London Locks, WV 56°F
Climate Living Index · Meteor Crater
Meteor Crater: 45/100 · grade D
Meteor Crater publishes 4 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 2 missing weights rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Meteor Crater, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 64/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 55.6°F · 11.9° from 67.5°F | 61/100 · C |
| Frost-free season | 176 days/year | 47/100 · D |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 154 calendar days | 44/100 · D |
| Precipitation balance | 12.3 in · 22.7 from 35 in | 19/100 · F |
Meteor Crater · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Meteor Crater's normals sit in a dry climate class: BSk
Precipitation is low relative to temperature but above true desert thresholds: cold semi-arid steppe (BSk). Class BSk is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: dry (arid or semi-arid), specifically cold semi-arid steppe.
- Köppen code
- BSk
- Group
- Dry (arid or semi-arid)
- Warmest month
- 76.0°F
- Coldest month
- 35.1°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Meteor Crater sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Meteor Crater's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- 62nd percentile warmth
- Mid-pack annual mean versus 6,861 station normals.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 89%
- Meteor Crater's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- 40th percentile swing
- Typical seasonal amplitude versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Meteor Crater compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Meteor Crater's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
64 49th percentile score exceeds 49% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). Below this entry.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Below this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). This entry sits in this band.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47°F (8°C) | 25°F (-4°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 1.1" | 27.5 | 0.0 |
| February | 53°F (12°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 41°F (5°C) | 1.0" | 19.1 | 0.0 |
| March | 62°F (17°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 48°F (9°C) | 0.5" | 12.5 | 0.0 |
| April | 68°F (20°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 54°F (12°C) | 0.7" | 9.1 | 0.0 |
| May | 77°F (25°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 0.5" | 3.5 | 0.7 |
| June | 88°F (31°C) | 56°F (13°C) | 72°F (22°C) | 0.3" | 0.3 | 15.9 |
| July | 91°F (33°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 76°F (24°C) | 1.9" | 0.0 | 17.0 |
| August | 88°F (31°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 74°F (24°C) | 2.4" | 0.0 | 11.5 |
| September | 82°F (28°C) | 55°F (13°C) | 68°F (20°C) | 1.6" | 0.5 | 2.9 |
| October | 70°F (21°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 57°F (14°C) | 0.9" | 2.7 | 0.1 |
| November | 57°F (14°C) | 32°F (0°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 0.7" | 16.4 | 0.0 |
| December | 47°F (8°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 0.6" | 26.9 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Meteor Crater works both ends of the calendar. Normal highs climb to 91°F by July 2 and hold at or above 90°F on 38 dates, then normal lows drop to freezing or below on 116 dates, bottoming at 23°F around December 20.
When the heat sits
Normal highs reach 90°F from June 21 through July 28, covering 38 dates. The broader mild season, normal highs of 70°F or more, runs April 26 to October 16.
This counts calendar dates whose 1991–2020 normal high reaches 90°F. It is a smaller number than the 90°F+ day counts in the monthly table above, which measure how often the threshold was actually crossed in a typical year. A date can average 88°F and still exceed 90°F in half of all years.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into March 9, then returns to freezing around November 15, covering 116 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
The widest day
June 6 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 33°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Meteor Crater.
Where Meteor Crater Stands Nationally
A drier-than-most normal water year — around 12 inches, below what four out of five ranked stations collect.
Daily temperature swings run wider than most of the country, peaking near 33°F between the normal high and low.
Meteor Crater earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall
Meteor Crater runs a summer-peaked wet season
37% of Meteor Crater's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is August at 2.4", on a 40.9°F seasonal spread. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.
- Wettest three months: August, July, September, taking 48% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: June at 0.3".
- Winter share: 23% falls in December, January and February.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
October 23
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
April 30
50% probability date
Growing Season
176 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
4,492
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
1,074
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside AZ closest to Meteor Crater on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (56°F here).
- Bradfordsville, KY 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Butler, MO 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Chatham, VA 56°F · 0.0°F off
- Cliff, NM 56°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (12.3" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Turner, MT 12.3" · 0.0" off
- Wisdom, MT 12.3" · 0.0" off
- Oakley, ID 12.3" · 0.0" off
- Chester, MT 12.3" · 0.0" off
Scarce-water calendar
Where Meteor Crater's limited precipitation lands
heating led · dry · mid swing
Meteor Crater's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 4,492 annual heating degree days against 1,074 for cooling. Its 40.9°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Meteor Crater's frost-free season lasts about 176 days, a middle-length window whose endpoints matter more than the annual average. It describes freeze probability, not year-specific planting conditions.
July and December mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Meteor Crater's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 40.9°F. The annual average is 56°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Meteor Crater's cold-season load does not imply a wet climate. Annual precipitation is 12.3 inches, which places the station in PlainClimate's dry range. Snowfall is not added to the interpretation because its annual value is missing. The snowfall and rainfall fields should be read separately rather than inferred from temperature.
Meteor Crater wettest normal
August
August concentrates the scarce annual total (12.3 inches).
Meteor Crater driest normal
June
June is typically driest; arid stations are defined by when water is absent, not by a four-season grid.
Questions about Meteor Crater's climate
How dry is Meteor Crater? ▼
How many days above 90°F does Meteor Crater get? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Meteor Crater? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Meteor Crater's primary station: METEOR CRATER (USC00025494). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Meteor Crater; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Meteor Crater comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.