Santa Rita Experiment Range, Arizona climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Santa Rita Experiment Range's normal year runs from 39°F December nights to 92°F July afternoons, with 20.6 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 18.5°C, December lows of 4°C, July highs of 33°C, 525 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationSanta Rita Experiment Range
- Station IDUSC00027593
- Location31.76°N 110.85°W
- Elevation4,300 ft (1,311 m)
On October 24, the normal high in Santa Rita Experiment Range is 77°F and the normal low 54°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 12%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Santa Rita Experiment Range.
- Jan 61° 40°
- Feb 64° 41°
- Mar 70° 45°
- Apr 76° 50°
- May 84° 57°
- Jun 93° 66°
- Jul 92° 69°
- Aug 89° 68°
- Sep 87° 65°
- Oct 79° 56°
- Nov 69° 47°
- Dec 60° 39°
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 Santa Rita Experiment Range each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 92°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 39°F. The most precipitation falls in July (4.87 in), the least in May (0.32 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61°F | 40°F | 50.2°F | 1.50 | 5 | <1 | 4 | 10 h 20 min |
| February | 64°F | 41°F | 52.2°F | 1.36 | 6 | <1 | 3 | 11 h |
| March | 70°F | 45°F | 57.7°F | 1.15 | 5 | <1 | 2 | 12 h |
| April | 76°F | 50°F | 63.0°F | 0.55 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 13 h |
| May | 84°F | 57°F | 70.8°F | 0.32 | 2 | 8 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| June | 93°F | 66°F | 79.7°F | 0.32 | 2 | 21 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| July | 92°F | 69°F | 80.0°F | 4.87 | 12 | 20 | <1 | 14 h |
| August | 89°F | 68°F | 78.3°F | 4.34 | 13 | 15 | <1 | 13 h 20 min |
| September | 87°F | 65°F | 76.3°F | 1.96 | 6 | 10 | <1 | 12 h 20 min |
| October | 79°F | 56°F | 67.8°F | 1.11 | 4 | 2 | <1 | 11 h 30 min |
| November | 69°F | 47°F | 58.0°F | 1.11 | 3 | <1 | 2 | 10 h 30 min |
| December | 60°F | 39°F | 49.2°F | 2.06 | 6 | <1 | 6 | 10 h 10 min |
| Year (annual) | 77°F | 54°F | 65.3°F | 20.65 | 64 | 74 | 17 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16°C | 4°C | 10.1°C | 38 mm |
| February | 18°C | 5°C | 11.2°C | 35 mm |
| March | 21°C | 7°C | 14.3°C | 29 mm |
| April | 25°C | 10°C | 17.2°C | 14 mm |
| May | 29°C | 14°C | 21.6°C | 8 mm |
| June | 34°C | 19°C | 26.5°C | 8 mm |
| July | 33°C | 20°C | 26.7°C | 124 mm |
| August | 32°C | 20°C | 25.7°C | 110 mm |
| September | 31°C | 18°C | 24.6°C | 50 mm |
| October | 26°C | 13°C | 19.9°C | 28 mm |
| November | 21°C | 8°C | 14.4°C | 28 mm |
| December | 15°C | 4°C | 9.6°C | 52 mm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00027593; 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 Santa Rita Experiment Range?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in March, April, May, October and November. Of those, May has the fewest days with rain (2).
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 USC00027593.
When is the last frost at Santa Rita Experiment Range?
In Santa Rita Experiment Range, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after February 25 in half of years and after March 29 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before December 5 in half of years and before November 16 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
- February 251 year in 10 after March 29; 9 in 10 after January 24
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- December 51 year in 10 before November 16; 9 in 10 before December 22
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 282 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 332 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after January 28 in half of springs and before December 19 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Santa Rita Experiment Range in zone 9a in ZIP code 85614, 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 USC00027593; 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 Santa Rita Experiment Range?
In a normal year in Santa Rita Experiment Range, 74 days a year reach 90°F (5 of them 100°F or more), 17 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 64 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 74a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 5a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 17a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 64a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1950) is 107°F, on June 25, 1970; the lowest is 11°F, on February 8, 1974.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1984, with 34.50 in; the snowiest season is 1971–72, with 24.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00027593; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00027593. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Santa Rita Experiment Range?
Over a year 89% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Santa Rita Experiment Range, 5.8 kWh per square metre a day. May is the sunniest month (94%) and July the cloudiest (79%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 87% | 3.8 |
| February | 87% | 4.7 |
| March | 90% | 6.2 |
| April | 94% | 7.6 |
| May | 94% | 8.3 |
| June | 92% | 8.1 |
| July | 79% | 6.5 |
| August | 83% | 6.3 |
| September | 87% | 5.8 |
| October | 92% | 5.2 |
| November | 90% | 4.1 |
| December | 87% | 3.5 |
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 Santa Rita Experiment Range record?
A normal year at Santa Rita Experiment Range brings 1,976 heating degree days, 63% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,095 cooling degree days, 2.3 times the median (908). Three months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,863 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 461 | 0 |
| February | 359 | 1 |
| March | 243 | 17 |
| April | 115 | 55 |
| May | 24 | 204 |
| June | 1 | 442 |
| July | 0 | 465 |
| August | 0 | 412 |
| September | 1 | 340 |
| October | 51 | 138 |
| November | 233 | 23 |
| December | 490 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 1,976 | 2,095 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00027593. 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 Santa Rita Experiment Range's climate compare?
Santa Rita Experiment Range is warmer than 50 of the 97 places with their own NOAA record in Arizona, and wetter than 83. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 65.3°F is warmer than 88%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Santa Rita Experiment Range is Csa: temperate, dry-summer, hot 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 Santa Rita Experiment Range share this climate record?
Elephant Head has no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of its 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.
- Elephant Head, AZ572 people · 9 mi W
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 Santa Rita Experiment Range's climate
What is the coldest month at Santa Rita Experiment Range?
December, with a normal high of 60°F and a normal low of 39°F. The warmest is July (92°F by day, 69°F at night).
What is the rainiest month at Santa Rita Experiment Range?
July, with 4.87 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is May with 0.32 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Santa Rita Experiment Range in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Santa Rita Experiment Range in zone 9a in ZIP code 85614, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Santa Rita Experiment Range?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after February 25; in one year in ten it comes after March 29. Waiting until March 29 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Arizona climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Sonoita, AZ12 miles from this station, 61.6°F a year
- Green Valley, AZ12 miles from this station, 68.4°F a year
- Tumacacori National Monument, AZ18 miles from this station, 63.0°F a year
- Rio Rico, AZ22 miles from this station, 62.4°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made