Minnewaukan, North Dakota climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Minnewaukan's normal year runs from −1°F January nights to 79°F July afternoons, with 19.7 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 4.2°C, January lows of −19°C, July highs of 26°C, 499 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationMinnewaukan
- Station IDUSC00325848
- Location48.08°N 99.27°W
- Elevation1,470 ft (448 m)
- Population188
On October 23, the normal high in Minnewaukan is 49°F and the normal low 29°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 17%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Minnewaukan.
- Jan 16° -1°
- Feb 21° 2°
- Mar 33° 14°
- Apr 50° 28°
- May 65° 41°
- Jun 74° 54°
- Jul 79° 58°
- Aug 79° 55°
- Sep 70° 45°
- Oct 54° 32°
- Nov 35° 18°
- Dec 22° 5°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Minnewaukan each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 79°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of −1°F. The most precipitation falls in June (3.62 in), the least in February (0.33 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16°F | −1°F | 7.3°F | 0.44 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 50 min |
| February | 21°F | 2°F | 11.3°F | 0.33 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 10 min |
| March | 33°F | 14°F | 23.3°F | 0.74 | 4 | <1 | 30 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 50°F | 28°F | 39.2°F | 1.32 | 5 | <1 | 20 | 13 h 40 min |
| May | 65°F | 41°F | 53.1°F | 3.06 | 9 | <1 | 5 | 15 h 10 min |
| June | 74°F | 54°F | 63.7°F | 3.62 | 11 | 1 | <1 | 16 h |
| July | 79°F | 58°F | 68.5°F | 3.03 | 9 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| August | 79°F | 55°F | 66.9°F | 2.03 | 8 | 3 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| September | 70°F | 45°F | 57.5°F | 2.02 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 54°F | 32°F | 42.8°F | 1.40 | 5 | <1 | 17 | 11 h |
| November | 35°F | 18°F | 26.8°F | 1.00 | 4 | <1 | 29 | 9 h 20 min |
| December | 22°F | 5°F | 13.5°F | 0.67 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 50°F | 29°F | 39.5°F | 19.66 | 70 | 6 | 191 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −9°C | −19°C | −13.7°C | 11 mm |
| February | −6°C | −17°C | −11.5°C | 8 mm |
| March | 0°C | −10°C | −4.8°C | 19 mm |
| April | 10°C | −2°C | 4.0°C | 34 mm |
| May | 18°C | 5°C | 11.7°C | 78 mm |
| June | 23°C | 12°C | 17.6°C | 92 mm |
| July | 26°C | 14°C | 20.3°C | 77 mm |
| August | 26°C | 13°C | 19.4°C | 52 mm |
| September | 21°C | 7°C | 14.2°C | 51 mm |
| October | 12°C | 0°C | 6.0°C | 36 mm |
| November | 2°C | −8°C | −2.9°C | 25 mm |
| December | −6°C | −15°C | −10.3°C | 17 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station, and no record within 25 miles keeps one, so snow is left out here rather than estimated.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00325848; 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.
When is the best weather to visit Minnewaukan?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (6).
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 USC00325848.
When is the last frost in Minnewaukan?
In Minnewaukan, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 12 in half of years and after May 25 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 29 in half of years and before September 17 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 121 year in 10 after May 25; 9 in 10 after May 1
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 291 year in 10 before September 17; 9 in 10 before October 12
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 138 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 156 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 4 in half of springs and before October 8 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Minnewaukan in zone 4a in ZIP code 58351, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Minnewaukan's NOAA station is in zone 4a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −27°F (15 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in North Dakota · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00325848; 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 in Minnewaukan?
In a normal year in Minnewaukan, 6 days a year reach 90°F, 191 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 70 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 6a 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
- 102high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 70a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00325848.
How sunny is Minnewaukan?
Over a year 77% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Minnewaukan, 3.9 kWh per square metre a day. February is the sunniest month (89%) and November the cloudiest (67%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 84% | 1.7 |
| February | 89% | 3.0 |
| March | 80% | 4.1 |
| April | 73% | 4.9 |
| May | 72% | 5.7 |
| June | 74% | 6.1 |
| July | 83% | 6.5 |
| August | 80% | 5.3 |
| September | 76% | 3.9 |
| October | 69% | 2.5 |
| November | 67% | 1.5 |
| December | 70% | 1.2 |
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 much heating and cooling does Minnewaukan need?
A normal year in Minnewaukan brings 9,598 heating degree days, 79% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 348 cooling degree days, 62% 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 1,992 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,789 | 0 |
| February | 1,504 | 0 |
| March | 1,291 | 0 |
| April | 774 | 0 |
| May | 377 | 8 |
| June | 102 | 63 |
| July | 31 | 139 |
| August | 51 | 110 |
| September | 251 | 26 |
| October | 689 | 1 |
| November | 1,145 | 0 |
| December | 1,595 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 9,598 | 348 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00325848. 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.
Has Minnewaukan been warmer than normal lately?
2022 averaged 37.9°F, 1.6°F below the 1991-2020 normal of 39.5°F.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 37.9°F | −1.6°F | – |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00325848. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Minnewaukan's climate compare?
Minnewaukan is warmer than 22 of the other 91 places with their own NOAA record in North Dakota, and wetter than 46. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 39.5°F is warmer than 5%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Minnewaukan is Dwb: continental, dry-winter, 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.
Which places near Minnewaukan share this climate record?
4 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.
- Maddock, ND386 people · 15 mi SW
- Sheyenne, ND184 people · 19 mi S
- Oberon, ND93 people · 11 mi S
- Brinsmade, ND27 people · 8 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 Minnewaukan's climate
What is the coldest month in Minnewaukan?
January, with a normal high of 16°F and a normal low of −1°F. The warmest is July (79°F by day, 58°F at night).
What is the rainiest month in Minnewaukan?
June, with 3.62 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 0.33 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Minnewaukan in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Minnewaukan in zone 4a in ZIP code 58351, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Minnewaukan's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −27°F (15 years, 1991-2020): zone 4a.
How late can frost come in Minnewaukan?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 12; in one year in ten it comes after May 25. Waiting until May 25 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- North Dakota climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Leeds, ND16 miles from this station, 38.7°F a year
- Devils Lake, ND19 miles from this station, 40.2°F a year
- Esmond, ND27 miles from this station, 39.1°F a year
- Harvey, ND34 miles from this station, 39.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made