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But it's a bit disingenuous not to mention that there have only been a tiny handful of days with a high under 90F in OKC since mid-June, and upper 90s-low 100s has been by far the most usual temperature range.
Dallas may be hotter in the summer, but overall OKC gets more wild temperature swings, is colder in the winter, and has a disproportionate share of severe weather events ranging from unpleasant to downright dangerous.
My point is that OKC gets breaks from the heat in the summer that places further south don't get. It is rare that OKC stays hot all summer from June to September although it does happen once or twice a decade. Usually summers here are punctuated with a few short periods of cooler weather. It is still pretty nice here this week (80s) and is supposed to be that way for a few more days. I'm sure we will have another couple of weeks of hot weather though.
My point is that OKC gets breaks from the heat in the summer that places further south don't get. It is rare that OKC stays hot all summer from June to September although it does happen once or twice a decade. Usually summers here are punctuated with a few short periods of cooler weather. It is still pretty nice here this week (80s) and is supposed to be that way for a few more days. I'm sure we will have another couple of weeks of hot weather though.
It’s 80F in OKC at 11pm right now with a humidity of 60%. With the exception of tomorrow because it’s raining, the rest of the week in OKC is in the 90s with humidities in the 40-50%. Maybe you’re used to it, but that’s not that nice for weather. That’s hot muggy weather.
Anywhere in the Great Plains states, horrible wind, extreme temperature swings, hard to grow nice trees of many different varieties, and prone to seeing long periods of drought.
In the Southern Plains, at least in the eastern half of it, the trees in residential areas don't have much trouble growing tall, like the Pin Oaks for starters. Even Magnolia trees are able to take an occasional bad winter when lows get down to subzero and a summer with a worse than usual drought.
One thing for sure is Bradford Pear trees don't care much for the Plains weather when it gets extreme. Years ago, they were promoted for being covered with early spring white flowers and later for blazing red foliage in the fall. In between, they may attract too many roosting birds. Decades ago, quite possibly the worst mistake downtown Stillwater ever made was to line the downtown part of Main St. with Bradford Pear trees. They were nice at first but later grew too big and obscured the store fronts. Numerous birds roosted in the trees and crapped on the sidewalks. The bird problem was so bad that it made the national news. Eventually, all the Bradford Pear Trees were cleared off and today a much more suitable variety of tree is planted and only on the street corners.
It’s 80F in OKC at 11pm right now with a humidity of 60%. With the exception of tomorrow because it’s raining, the rest of the week in OKC is in the 90s with humidities in the 40-50%. Maybe you’re used to it, but that’s not that nice for weather. That’s hot muggy weather.
90s with humidity levels between 40 and 50 is not muggy. Take it from someone who's lived in the Southeast for decades, but has also lived on the West Coast, the most muggy days are ones where the temps are in the high 80s to 90 with humidity levels around 70% or higher. After passing 90 in most places in the USA, even the humid ones, the humidity levels tend to drop as the temp rises. These folks who say that it's 100 degrees and 100% humidity are full of it. That's HIGHLY unlikely, if not impossible, even in the Southeast. When heatwaves push temps that high, the humidity level nearly always drops. The other dynamic at play in humid climates is that the nights are often more humid than the daytime. As the temps drop after sunset, the humidity often rises. This prevents many places in the deep South and Florida from cooling off in the Summer.
There are many reasons why most rural areas of the Great Plains had more people in 1900 than 2020, and "soft" has nothing to do with it.
But I think it's more accurate to say that most rural areas of the Great Plains had more people in 1930 just before the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression than in 2020. For instance, Noble County in Oklahoma peaked out in population in 1930 at 15,139. In 1900, it was 11,798. But then some Great Plains counties didn't peak in population until 1980 as in highly rural Thomas County in northwestern Kansas. In 2022 wheat and cattle are still strong there as agricultural industries as long as drought conditions don't interfere too much.
Being soft has a lot to do with it if you can't fit in with the Western Plains culture from its harsh weather and agricultural oriented industries. Have you ever driven through Dodge City, KS and experienced how bad it stinks from the huge mass cattle feed lots? I have. Since I wasn't born there, my nose is sure too soft to ever want to move there. Dodge City may very well rival Oklahoma City for the city with the worst weather, if the bad smell in its air counts.
But I think it's more accurate to say that most rural areas of the Great Plains had more people in 1930 just before the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression than in 2020. For instance, Noble County in Oklahoma peaked out in population in 1930 at 15,139. In 1900, it was 11,798. But then some Great Plains counties didn't peak in population until 1980 as in highly rural Thomas County in northwestern Kansas. In 2022 wheat and cattle are still strong there as agricultural industries as long as drought conditions don't interfere too much.
Being soft has a lot to do with it if you can't fit in with the Western Plains culture from its harsh weather and agricultural oriented industries. Have you ever driven through Dodge City, KS and experienced how bad it stinks from the huge mass cattle feed lots? I have. Since I wasn't born there, my nose is sure too soft to ever want to move there. Dodge City may very well rival Oklahoma City for the city with the worst weather, if the bad smell in its air counts.
I have lived in Kansas before, so I’m well aware that the climate is by far one of its worst features. The Census Bureau delineates any county with a population density of seven or fewer people per square mile to be a frontier county. This includes the majority of the counties in many areas. Farm and ranch consolidation also accelerated population declines in “agriculturally dependent” rural counties that featured very little in the way of non-farm employment. One could also argue that the Homestead Act resulted in an excess of population in many geographic areas that wasn’t sustainable given the significant number of headwinds that were faced.
It’s 80F in OKC at 11pm right now with a humidity of 60%. With the exception of tomorrow because it’s raining, the rest of the week in OKC is in the 90s with humidities in the 40-50%. Maybe you’re used to it, but that’s not that nice for weather. That’s hot muggy weather.
You simply made the case behind why a $250,000 house in Oklahoma City may go for a million or better in the Pacific Northwest or California. On the other hand, thank God, somebody discovered refrigerated air conditioning.
Anyway, it's better to make your case for Oklahoma City being a bad place for the temperature and humidity for being for what they are in the afternoon, rather than the nighttime.
90s with humidity levels between 40 and 50 is not muggy. Take it from someone who's lived in the Southeast for decades, but has also lived on the West Coast, the most muggy days are ones where the temps are in the high 80s to 90 with humidity levels around 70% or higher. After passing 90 in most places in the USA, even the humid ones, the humidity levels tend to drop as the temp rises. These folks who say that it's 100 degrees and 100% humidity are full of it. That's HIGHLY unlikely, if not impossible, even in the Southeast. When heatwaves push temps that high, the humidity level nearly always drops. The other dynamic at play in humid climates is that the nights are often more humid than the daytime. As the temps drop after sunset, the humidity often rises. This prevents many places in the deep South and Florida from cooling off in the Summer.
A temperature of 93F with a relative humidity of 45% means a dew point of 68.5F, which is uncomfortably muggy. If you’re from or grew up in the Southeast, then you’re probably acclimated to temperatures like that. Dew points above 60F are very uncommon for the West Coast.
It’s 80F in OKC at 11pm right now with a humidity of 60%. With the exception of tomorrow because it’s raining, the rest of the week in OKC is in the 90s with humidities in the 40-50%. Maybe you’re used to it, but that’s not that nice for weather. That’s hot muggy weather.
Oklahoma City may be humid compared to the Western US, but it seldom gets to the same levels as Houston, New Orleans, Memphis or anywhere in Florida. Minimum temperatures in the upcoming days are forecast to be in the high 60s which virtually never happens on the Gulf Coast in August. Galveston near Houston actually had nights earlier this summer that didn't fall below the mid 80s.
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