Monsoon weather.....what to expect and when to expect it? (home, travel)

[sablebaby]

Originally Posted by nehazaidi

Thats scaring the @#%! out of me!

Oh noooo! It's SOOOO cool!!!! I LOVE the monsoon season....except for the humidity. I love big storms. We just don't get enough of them here.

[HX_Guy]

Here are a few pictures from July 23rd, 2002...

[ejk]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Here is a hot insider tip for all you AZ newbies. Replace your windshield wiper blades in the next week or so BEFORE monsoon begins. If you have been here more than 90 days your wipers are completely dried out and will scrape on the windshield and not work. When the first rains hit, the store shelves will be stripped bare of the popular sizes of blades.

You've just brought back one of my favorite memories from my first year here LMAO

Very good advice. I learned the hard way

[EugeneBKLYN]

Those are some gorgeous pictures ^^^^^^

I'd also like throw in a question...

How high do dew points get in during the Monsoon season? I know the temperatures should be 100-110 range.

[Ponderosa]

In Phoenix, a monsoon day is defined as having an average dewpoint above 55. Most days it is in the upper 50's, low 60s, though I do recall occasional dp's in the low 70s. That is pretty rare and when it happens it is usually from a tropical storm and it is cloudy and "cool". Yuma gets 70+ quite frequently from gulf moisture surges. These usually mix out fairly quickly, but it can make it pretty miserable for those folks.

The worst days of the year heat-wise can happen in July when the dewpoints fall to upper-40s/low50s allowing temps to jump into the 110+ area along with that moderate humidity. Ughh!

[twiggy]

Gorgeous photos, I can't wait!
3 days in a row with dew pt above 55.
People talk about how much they hate the humidity, but I don't mind it. It's nice to have a little moisture. Note, swamp coolers don't work during the monsoon.

[El_Waiboi]

I am not from Arizona, and when I first arrive, everyone talked a whole lot about the "Monsoons"...Anyway, I got excited and was expecting something out of this world, like a real supernatural phonomenon...However, what I now understand is this: Since it hardly ever rains here in Arizona, they consider a thunderstorm a "Monsoon"...Think of it like this:

"Monsoon" in Arizona Terminology = "Rainy day" in the other 49 states lol

So yeah, its cool, but don't get too excited.

[HX_Guy]

I agree with you on that, I think people make too big of a deal. Don't expect some hurricane type storm. It's stormier then normal, but nothing crazy that you have to run to cover for.

[EugeneBKLYN]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

In Phoenix, a monsoon day is defined as having an average dewpoint above 55. Most days it is in the upper 50's, low 60s, though I do recall occasional dp's in the low 70s. That is pretty rare and when it happens it is usually from a tropical storm and it is cloudy and "cool". Yuma gets 70+ quite frequently from gulf moisture surges. These usually mix out fairly quickly, but it can make it pretty miserable for those folks.

The worst days of the year heat-wise can happen in July when the dewpoints fall to upper-40s/low50s allowing temps to jump into the 110+ area along with that moderate humidity. Ughh!

Ech... 60s in the triple digits is pretty sticky. But oh well. I'm sitting here in the upper 80s and a 74 degree dewpoint without AC. I guess I could manage.

[LVGAZ]

You won't get them here either - except for the 2-3 weeks in mid summer
and it is mostly dust and humidity..
Not pleasant to go through....
don't forget we also get mini tornadoes during this time - that can turn over cars