Sunset Crater National Monument, AZ Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Explore NOAA NCEI's 1991–2020 climate normals → and a clearly labeled PlainClimate comfort calculation
- Cooler national band · Avg annual temp
- 46°FAnnual mean temperature: 46.1°F. National station-mapped location corpus median: 52.2°F across 6,861 measured records.
- Lower score band · Comfort score
- 49/100PlainClimate Comfort Score: 49/100. National station-mapped Comfort Score corpus median: 64/100 across 6,189 measured records.
- Drier national band · Annual precip
- 17.0"Annual precipitation: 17.0 inches. National station-mapped location corpus median: 36.2 inches across 6,352 measured records.
- Short-season national band · Growing season
- 95dFrost-free growing season: 95 days. National station-mapped location corpus median: 180 days across 6,446 measured records.
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Sunset Crater National Monument's primary NOAA station, SUNSET CRATER NM.
The climate verdict for Sunset Crater National Monument
Dryness leads the climate profile for Sunset Crater National Monument, Arizona, with 17.0 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 46°F. At 49/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 18% of scores.
- 46°F
- yearly average temperature, NOAA normal
- 49/100
- comfort score, above 18% of station-mapped location scores
- 17.0"
- annual precipitation · 49" snow
- 95 days
- frost-free days per growing season
Based on NOAA U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020) - 30-year averages describing the typical year, not a forecast.
Avg Temperature
46°F (8°C)Annual mean temperature: 46.1°F. National station-mapped location corpus median: 52.2°F across 6,861 measured records.
Cooler national band
Avg High
63°FAnnual average daily high: 63.3°F. National station-mapped location corpus median: 63.8°F across 6,861 measured records.
Cooler than median
Avg Low
29°FAnnual average daily low: 28.9°F. National station-mapped location corpus median: 41.1°F across 6,861 measured records.
Cooler national band
Annual Precip
17.0"Annual precipitation: 17.0 inches. National station-mapped location corpus median: 36.2 inches across 6,352 measured records.
Drier national band
Annual Snow
49.3"Annual snowfall: 49.3 inches. National station-mapped location corpus median: 18.9 inches across 4,098 measured records.
High-snow national band
Comfort Score
49/100PlainClimate Comfort Score: 49/100. National station-mapped Comfort Score corpus median: 64/100 across 6,189 measured records.
Lower score band · Moderate
Climate Living Index · Sunset Crater National Monument
Sunset Crater National Monument's broader climate profile: 18/100
Sunset Crater National Monument scores 18/100 on 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions, the missing weight redistributes across the measured NOAA products (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals).
PlainClimate-derived for Sunset Crater National Monument, not an official NOAA rating. Comfort Score 49/100 stays the rankings formula; Living Index is separate. Limits: methodology.
-
Precipitation balance
17.0 in · 18.0 from 35 in
36/100 F · weight 15%NOAA annual/seasonal normals ·
ANN-PRCP-NORMAL -
Annual temperature balance
46.1°F · 21.4° from 67.5°F
24/100 F · weight 25%NOAA annual/seasonal normals ·
ANN-TAVG-NORMAL -
Snowfall burden
49.3 inches/year
21/100 F · weight 10%NOAA annual/seasonal normals ·
ANN-SNOW-NORMAL -
Normal heat + freeze calendar
216 calendar days
7/100 F · weight 25%NOAA daily multivariate normals ·
DLY-TMAX-NORMAL + DLY-TMIN-NORMAL (derived counts) -
Frost-free season
95 days/year
0/100 F · weight 10%NOAA annual/seasonal normals ·
ANN-TMIN-PRBLST-T32FP50 + ANN-TMIN-PRBFST-T32FP50 -
Summer moisture balance
Not measured
N/A N/A · weight 15%Sunset Crater National Monument: Summer moisture balance unscored · 15% weight redistributed.
NOAA hourly normals ·
HLY-DEWP-NORMAL
Sunset Crater National Monument: 5/6 dimensions scored; weights rescale to 100. Breakpoints: Living Index methodology.
Established ranking Comfort Score: 49/100 · inspect its separate fixed-point formula
- Precipitation moderation17.0 inches/year20/30 points
- Temperature mildness46.1°F annual mean20/40 points
- Snow burden49.3 inches/year5/15 points
- Frost-free season95 days/year4/15 points
49/100 available points → 49/100. Full Comfort Score method.
Sunset Crater National Monument inputs: NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals · updated 2026-08-04. Source NOAA NCEI Climate Normals. Method.
How Sunset Crater National Monument compares with its closest stations
Against the 6 closest stations in the record, Sunset Crater National Monument averages 46°F a year, warmer than Flagstaff, AZ (45°F) and Bellemont, AZ (44°F), and cooler than Walnut Canyon National Monument, AZ (51°F) and Fort Valley, AZ (47°F). On comfort score it places 4 of 7 in that local group.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Sunset Crater National Monument sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Sunset Crater National Monument's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 77%
- Among 6,861 stations, Sunset Crater National Monument sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 78%
- Sunset Crater National Monument's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 71%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Sunset Crater National Monument is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Sunset Crater National Monument compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Sunset Crater National Monument's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
49 18th percentile score exceeds 18% 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%). This entry sits in this band.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 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
Sunset Crater National Monument's measured station temperature trend
MethodologyAcross 37 complete annual observations from 1970 to 2016, SUNSET CRATER NM warmed at a fitted rate of 0.41°C per decade. The line shows the fitted change relative to its first year, not raw year-to-year temperatures or a forecast.
- Sunset Crater National Monument primary station fitted change +0.41 °C/decade
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44°F (7°C) | 13°F (-11°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 1.4" | 12.2" | 30.2 | 0.0 |
| February | 47°F (8°C) | 16°F (-9°C) | 31°F (0°C) | 1.1" | 9.4" | 27.3 | 0.0 |
| March | 54°F (12°C) | 21°F (-6°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 1.1" | 6.1" | 28.4 | 0.0 |
| April | 61°F (16°C) | 27°F (-3°C) | 44°F (7°C) | 0.7" | 4.2" | 22.2 | 0.0 |
| May | 70°F (21°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 52°F (11°C) | 0.7" | 0.8" | 15.1 | 0.1 |
| June | 82°F (28°C) | 42°F (5°C) | 62°F (17°C) | 0.3" | 0.0" | 3.7 | 4.5 |
| July | 84°F (29°C) | 49°F (9°C) | 67°F (19°C) | 2.6" | 0.0" | 0.0 | 6.6 |
| August | 81°F (27°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 3.5" | 0.0" | 0.2 | 1.4 |
| September | 75°F (24°C) | 40°F (4°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 1.7" | 0.0" | 5.0 | 0.2 |
| October | 65°F (18°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 46°F (8°C) | 1.4" | 1.2" | 24.1 | 0.0 |
| November | 53°F (12°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 0.9" | 3.5" | 28.2 | 0.0 |
| December | 44°F (7°C) | 12°F (-11°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 1.7" | 11.9" | 30.2 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 85°F around July 2, short of 90°F on every date, while 216 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 12°F near December 25.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 8, then returns to freezing around October 6, covering 216 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.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is August 3, when 47% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is June 8 at 10%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 74 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 11 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 41°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Sunset Crater National Monument.
Where Sunset Crater National Monument Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 216 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
Day-to-night contrast is extreme by national standards — the widest normal daily swing reaches about 41°F, sharper than nine in ten ranked stations see.
Sunset Crater National Monument earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 12.2"
5.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 9.4"
5.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 6.1"
4.9 days with precipitation
Snow: 4.2"
3.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.8"
4.1 days with precipitation
2.3 days with precipitation
11.8 days with precipitation
14.2 days with precipitation
7.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.2"
5.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 3.5"
3.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 11.9"
5.8 days with precipitation
Sunset Crater National Monument runs a summer-peaked wet season
38% of Sunset Crater National Monument'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 3.5", on a 38.4°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 46% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: June at 0.3".
- Winter share: 25% 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.
How Sunset Crater National Monument's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 74 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 17.0" between them, or roughly 0.23 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Sunset Crater National Monument
Sunset Crater National Monument averages 49.3 inches of snowfall a year, with January the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 20 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 49.3 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 20 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 29% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 19
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
June 16
50% probability date
Growing Season
95 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
7,029
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
171
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Places with a similar climate profile
For Sunset Crater National Monument, heating load dominates the year, so the energy-peer list below is the sharper match, stations with similar heating and cooling degree-day totals, while temperature peers only match annual mean.
Closest annual-temperature peers
Nearby station-mapped locations
What Sunset Crater National Monument's climate means for you
Sunset Crater National Monument runs 46°F a year - peaking in July, coldest in December.
- The frost-free window is short at about 95 days, opening only once the last spring freeze passes near June 16, which rules out long-season crops outdoors.
- Keeping warm is the dominant household load: 7,029 heating degree days against only 171 for cooling.
- Compare Sunset Crater National Monument's heating load and cold-month normals with state and national rankings. See rankings
Climate Guides
Data-derived climate profile
How Sunset Crater National Monument's climate pattern fits together
heating led · dry · mid swing
Sunset Crater National Monument's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 7,029 annual heating degree days against 171 for cooling. Its 38.4°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 95 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
July and December mark the typical warm and cold ends of the calendar in Sunset Crater National Monument's middle-range seasonal profile. The measured spread is 38.4°F. The annual average is 46°F. Neither the annual mean nor one extreme month represents the full calendar on its own.
Sunset Crater National Monument's cold-season load does not imply a wet climate. Annual precipitation is 17.0 inches, which places the station in PlainClimate's dry range. Annual snowfall totals 49.3 inches. The snowfall and rainfall fields should be read separately rather than inferred from temperature.
These labels group NOAA 1991-2020 normals from Sunset Crater National Monument's primary station, so the winter figures are a thirty-year average and not a floor: a single hard season can run well below them. Treat each band as a descriptive range for Sunset Crater National Monument, not an official NOAA class or a year-ahead forecast.
The year in four calendar signals
- Warmest normal
- July
- Even at its warmest the station only averages 67°F (19°C), so no month here is hot by national standards.
- Coldest normal
- December
- The monthly mean of 28°F (-2°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.
- Rainfall rhythm
- August to June
- August is typically wettest; June is driest.
- Mild-temperature window
- June through September
- Monthly means sit between 55°F and 75°F in this window. Freezing days are still reported from January through December.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average temperature in Sunset Crater National Monument, AZ? ▼
How much snow does Sunset Crater National Monument get? ▼
How cold does Sunset Crater National Monument get in winter? ▼
What is the comfort score for Sunset Crater National Monument? ▼
When is the growing season in Sunset Crater National Monument? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Sunset Crater National Monument? ▼
Where does this Sunset Crater National Monument climate data come from? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Sunset Crater National Monument's primary station: SUNSET CRATER NM (USC00028329). 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 Sunset Crater National Monument; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
Related
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Sunset Crater National Monument 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.