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Dubuque, Iowa climate
Dfa Hot-summer humid continental
Dubuque has a strongly seasonal cool-temperate climate (Hot-summer humid continental, Köppen Dfa). The hottest month is July with an average daily high near 29°C, while the coldest is January averaging around −12°C at night. Precipitation totals about 986 mm a year and is strongly seasonal — June alone averages 143 mm while January barely receives 34 mm. Winters bring significant snowfall (92 cm of snow per year on average).
Temperature & precipitation
Daily high–low temperature range with the monthly average, plus monthly precipitation split into rain and snow · 1991–2020 normals · hover a month for the exact figuresClear vs cloudy days
Share of days each month that are clear, partly cloudy or cloudy · 1991–2020 · hover a month for the day countsDubuque climate normals (1991–2020)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | −3 | 0 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 27 | 29 | 28 | 24 | 16 | 8 | 1 |
| Avg temp (°C) | −7 | −5 | 2 | 9 | 16 | 21 | 24 | 22 | 18 | 11 | 3 | −4 |
| Avg low (°C) | −12 | −11 | −4 | 3 | 10 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 12 | 5 | −2 | −8 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 34 | 37 | 53 | 96 | 113 | 143 | 135 | 95 | 99 | 78 | 60 | 44 |
| Snowfall (cm) | 30 | 22 | 9 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 3 | 25 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | −3 | 0 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 27 |
| Avg temp (°C) | −7 | −5 | 2 | 9 | 16 | 21 |
| Avg low (°C) | −12 | −11 | −4 | 3 | 10 | 16 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 34 | 37 | 53 | 96 | 113 | 143 |
| Snowfall (cm) | 30 | 22 | 9 | 2 | — | — |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 29 | 28 | 24 | 16 | 8 | 1 |
| Avg temp (°C) | 24 | 22 | 18 | 11 | 3 | −4 |
| Avg low (°C) | 18 | 17 | 12 | 5 | −2 | −8 |
| Precipitation (mm) | 135 | 95 | 99 | 78 | 60 | 44 |
| Snowfall (cm) | — | — | — | 0 | 3 | 25 |
How often — frequency of weather events
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 8 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 |
| Days with high ≥ 32°C (days) | — | — | — | — | 1 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0.1 | — | — |
| Days with low ≤ 0°C (days) | 30 | 26 | 22 | 6 | 0.2 | 0.1 | — | — | — | 3 | 17 | 28 |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 2.5 cm (days) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0.3 | — | — | — | — | — | 0.0 | 0.6 | 3 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 8 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 12 |
| Days with high ≥ 32°C (days) | — | — | — | — | 1 | 4 |
| Days with low ≤ 0°C (days) | 30 | 26 | 22 | 6 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 2.5 cm (days) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0.3 | — | — |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days with measurable rain (days) | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 |
| Days with high ≥ 32°C (days) | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0.1 | — | — |
| Days with low ≤ 0°C (days) | — | — | — | 3 | 17 | 28 |
| Days with snowfall ≥ 2.5 cm (days) | — | — | — | 0.0 | 0.6 | 3 |
Sky & atmosphere
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 65 | 63 | 65 | 66 | 66 | 60 | 52 | 53 | 50 | 61 | 66 | 67 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 5 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 11 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 88 | 85 | 79 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 76 | 74 | 74 | 76 | 82 | 88 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 8.5 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 8.2 | 7.0 | 5.8 | 5.2 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 6.9 | 7.3 | 7.4 |
| Jan – Jun | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 65 | 63 | 65 | 66 | 66 | 60 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 11 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 9 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 88 | 85 | 79 | 76 | 77 | 78 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 8.5 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 8.2 | 7.0 | 5.8 |
| Jul – Dec | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 52 | 53 | 50 | 61 | 66 | 67 |
| Clear days (≤ 30% cloud) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 5 |
| Partly cloudy days (30–70%) | 13 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| Cloudy days (≥ 70%) | 10 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| Relative humidity (%) | 76 | 74 | 74 | 76 | 82 | 88 |
| Wind speed (mph) | 5.2 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 6.9 | 7.3 | 7.4 |
Methodology & sources
Temperature & precipitation — the official 1991–2020 climate normals from NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals, measured at Dubuque L&d 11 (NOAA GHCN station USC00132364), about 5 km from the city centre.
Cloud, humidity, wind & sunshine — modelled estimates from NASA POWER, NASA's satellite-and-reanalysis climatology. This is the standard global source for atmospheric variables, which are not measured at most weather stations.