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We initially drove to Emerald Isle the first week of April 2014 strictly to visit friends who relocated there from NJ. We also visited Beaufort and liked both areas. So much so, that is when we seriously began to think about retiring from NH to that Coastal NC area. We then visited with family in Wilmington, but found that too crowded, too congested and too city-like.
However, I now have a questions regarding the weather, specifically the weather in the winter months.
I have been following the weather in the North Carolina Coastal area via the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website:
Could not help but notice that commencing with October, but particularly during the months of November and December, the weather in the Newport, Emerald Isle, Beaufort, Swansboro, and Sneads Ferry areas often reflected a 30%, 50% or even 70% chance of rain, almost on a consistent weekly basis. Not exacty happy about those stats
So ... would like to hear comments on this matter, i.e., just how often does it actually does rain, how much, are those statistics very true OR is it more of a 20% chance of rain, etc., etc., in those weeks of late October thru end of February, beginning of March.
I think you are asking a question that is very difficult to answer. I don't think anyone has an encyclopedia-like recall of how much rain a given area has received during a specific time period over a long period of time. Personally, I don't think the NC coastal area is especially rainy during the winter. Statistically, we get more rain in July, August and September (think summer thunderstorms and hurricanes). In the late fall and winter, rain is more likely to come from a cold front or nor'easter, which certainly can create more of an all day (or at least longer term) storm than a quick moving summer thunderstorm.
AS you can see, October through June has about the same amount of average precipitation each month. Again, there may be more lingering type rain events in the winter than the summer, but there's certainly no Seattle-type weather here.
Here's another website that shows the number of annual precipitation days for Morehead City (94) versus the U.S. (100). Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed
Hope that helps.
If you dig down into the data what you'll actually see is that Eastern NC goes into and out of various stages of drought that can last for tens of months at a time.
This summer we had pretty regular rain, about once a week or so. Then when September came along the rain dried up until the end of November and then it started raining again.
Directly along the Crystal Coast small thunderstorms can occur at any time during the hot summer months. Folks that live there deny it (?) but the radar data and reporting stations tell a different story.
Those statistics look good. December ranges from 1 to 4 inches of rain. My memory is that we have had rain one or two days of every week this year. There are occasional days where we get 2-3 inches in a day, and we get flooding in the creeks. And, yes, it does snow occasionally.
So, it isn't as bad as the Pacific Northwest, but some days can be dreary. OTOH, we also get stretches of lovely weather in the 60-70 degree range in the winter.
I don't see how that chart answers the OP's question, which relates to the amount of rain received in the fall and winter along the coast. Virtually all areas go in and out of drought over time.
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"48 years in MD, 18 in NC"
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Originally Posted by carolinadawg2
I don't see how that chart answers the OP's question, which relates to the amount of rain received in the fall and winter along the coast. Virtually all areas go in and out of drought over time.
You have to dig deeper into the database and be able to interpret the data. What the data will reveal is exactly what the OP is looking for.
You have to dig deeper into the database and be able to interpret the data. What the data will reveal is exactly what the OP is looking for.
It would be interesting to know if the OP can find it, but since you did, what does the data show? How many days of rain does Emerald Isle experience during October to February? What is the chance of rain for each of those days?
We moved to Newport from Erie PA. this past summer. Although the rainfall total was higher this year than in many years past, it was still an improvement over what we were used to in Erie. When we walk the dogs, we can't help but comment on the blue, blue sky which is far different from the constant grey we were used to. And even though there is some rain this time of year (Jan.), there are many days with no rain.
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"48 years in MD, 18 in NC"
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Location: Greenville, NC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by carolinadawg2
It would be interesting to know if the OP can find it, but since you did, what does the data show? How many days of rain does Emerald Isle experience during October to February? What is the chance of rain for each of those days?
There are no long term chance of rain on any individual day. The best you can get is an average for an area. That data is provided at the link.
You can tell by the fields at school. They were green all fall long, when normally they are grey or even dead shortly after the hordes descend on them.
Data or not, the last year has been pretty wet. But in Eastern NC, especially summer, you can see one field green and within a mile or so, a parched field. The water surrounded by land, creates a lot of inshore breezes and instabilty. Rainfall is not as uniform as some specific sites may make you believe. A couple of big thunderbumpers, tracking over the same area, can really put down the rain, in a fairly localized area.
Having said that, I was out for well over an hour, yesterday, 1/2/15 in tee shirt and shorts. Game, set, match!
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