Painted Desert National Park, Arizona climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Painted Desert National Park's normal year runs from 22°F December nights to 92°F July afternoons, with 9.9 inches of precipitation and 2 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 12.3°C, December lows of −6°C, July highs of 33°C, 253 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationPainted Desert National Park
- Station IDUSC00026190
- Location35.07°N 109.77°W
- Elevation5,760 ft (1,756 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Painted Desert National Park is 68°F and the normal low 37°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 15%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Painted Desert National Park.
- Jan 48° 22°
- Feb 53° 25°
- Mar 61° 30°
- Apr 68° 35°
- May 78° 44°
- Jun 89° 53°
- Jul 92° 60°
- Aug 88° 58°
- Sep 82° 51°
- Oct 71° 40°
- Nov 58° 28°
- Dec 47° 22°
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 Painted Desert National Park each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 92°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 22°F. The most precipitation falls in August (1.74 in), the least in June (0.26 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48°F | 22°F | 35.0°F | 0.93 | 0.7 | 4 | <1 | 27 | 10 h |
| February | 53°F | 25°F | 38.9°F | 0.65 | 0.1 | 4 | <1 | 23 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 61°F | 30°F | 45.4°F | 0.70 | 0.2 | 4 | <1 | 18 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 68°F | 35°F | 51.7°F | 0.39 | 0.2 | 3 | <1 | 9 | 13 h |
| May | 78°F | 44°F | 60.6°F | 0.46 | 0.0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 14 h |
| June | 89°F | 53°F | 70.8°F | 0.26 | 0.0 | 2 | 18 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| July | 92°F | 60°F | 75.5°F | 1.36 | 0.0 | 8 | 23 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| August | 88°F | 58°F | 73.3°F | 1.74 | 0.0 | 9 | 17 | <1 | 13 h 30 min |
| September | 82°F | 51°F | 66.6°F | 1.12 | 0.0 | 6 | 4 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 71°F | 40°F | 55.2°F | 0.96 | 0.0 | 5 | <1 | 4 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 58°F | 28°F | 43.1°F | 0.62 | 0.3 | 4 | <1 | 18 | 10 h 20 min |
| December | 47°F | 22°F | 34.0°F | 0.76 | 0.1 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 69°F | 39°F | 54.2°F | 9.95 | 1.6 | 58 | 65 | 128 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9°C | −5°C | 1.7°C | 24 mm | 2 cm |
| February | 11°C | −4°C | 3.8°C | 17 mm | 0 cm |
| March | 16°C | −1°C | 7.4°C | 18 mm | 1 cm |
| April | 20°C | 2°C | 10.9°C | 10 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 25°C | 6°C | 15.9°C | 12 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 31°C | 12°C | 21.6°C | 7 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 33°C | 15°C | 24.2°C | 35 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 31°C | 15°C | 22.9°C | 44 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 28°C | 11°C | 19.2°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 21°C | 4°C | 12.9°C | 24 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 15°C | −2°C | 6.2°C | 16 mm | 1 cm |
| December | 8°C | −6°C | 1.1°C | 19 mm | 0 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00026190; 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 Painted Desert National Park?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, April has the fewest days with rain (3).
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 USC00026190.
When is the last frost at Painted Desert National Park?
In Painted Desert National Park, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 1 in half of years and after May 16 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 20 in half of years and before October 6 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 11 year in 10 after May 16; 9 in 10 after April 18
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 201 year in 10 before October 6; 9 in 10 before November 3
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 169 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 192 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after April 19 in half of springs and before October 30 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Painted Desert National Park in zone 7a in ZIP code 86028, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Arizona · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00026190; 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 Painted Desert National Park?
In a normal year in Painted Desert National Park, 65 days a year reach 90°F (4 of them 100°F or more), 128 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 58 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 65a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 4a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 128a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 3high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 58a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 1a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00026190.
How sunny is it at Painted Desert National Park?
Over a year 86% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Painted Desert National Park, 5.6 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (92%) and December the cloudiest (79%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 81% | 3.1 |
| February | 81% | 4.1 |
| March | 85% | 5.6 |
| April | 87% | 7.0 |
| May | 89% | 7.9 |
| June | 92% | 8.4 |
| July | 84% | 7.2 |
| August | 85% | 6.6 |
| September | 88% | 5.9 |
| October | 89% | 4.8 |
| November | 87% | 3.6 |
| December | 79% | 2.8 |
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 Painted Desert National Park record?
A normal year at Painted Desert National Park brings 4,817 heating degree days, 10% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 899 cooling degree days, 1% 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 3,320 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 932 | 0 |
| February | 731 | 0 |
| March | 608 | 0 |
| April | 399 | 0 |
| May | 168 | 32 |
| June | 13 | 185 |
| July | 0 | 327 |
| August | 1 | 259 |
| September | 43 | 93 |
| October | 306 | 3 |
| November | 656 | 0 |
| December | 961 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,817 | 899 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00026190. 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 Painted Desert National Park been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 56.4°F, 2.1°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 54.2°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 55.3°F | +1.1°F | 9.88 | – |
| 2022 | 54.4°F | +0.2°F | 13.05 | 5.1 |
| 2024 | 56.1°F | +1.9°F | 10.05 | 5.0 |
| 2025 | 56.4°F | +2.1°F | 7.93 | 7.2 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00026190. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Painted Desert National Park's climate compare?
Painted Desert National Park is warmer than 16 of the 97 places with their own NOAA record in Arizona, and wetter than 36. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 54.2°F is warmer than 58%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Painted Desert National Park 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 Painted Desert National Park's climate
What is the coldest month at Painted Desert National Park?
December, with a normal high of 47°F and a normal low of 22°F. The warmest is July (92°F by day, 60°F at night).
Does it snow at Painted Desert National Park?
Yes: 2 inches in a normal year, falling on 2 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (0.7 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Painted Desert National Park?
August, with 1.74 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is June with 0.26 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Painted Desert National Park in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Painted Desert National Park in zone 7a in ZIP code 86028, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Painted Desert National Park?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 1; in one year in ten it comes after May 16. Waiting until May 16 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Arizona climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Petrified Forest National Park, AZ20 miles from this station, 55.6°F a year
- Holbrook, AZ24 miles from this station, 56.6°F a year
- Sanders, AZ27 miles from this station, 52.2°F a year
- Snowflake, AZ43 miles from this station, 53.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made