Cities you thought were hotter/colder/wetter/etc than what they are (climate misconceptions) (ice, recorded)

[Maxwell Senf]

Weather History for Vancouver, WA | Weather Underground

[B87]

Didn't realise that the NE was almost as dry as the SE, and didn't realise that Cornwall and coastal California were so cold in summer.

[jgtheone]

I didn't know that Japan was so snowy, especially on the coast.

[kpl1228]

Originally Posted by alex985

Where in New Mexico do you live? Most of NM is high elevation, not surprising that it gets cold there.

near Gallup

[tommyFL]

Here's a climate misconception: places that are very hot in summer never get cold in winter. What is with all the people surprised that Arizona can get freezing nights, even in low elevation parts? If people understood the concepts of deserts, they wouldn't be shocked to find out a climate can get over 100 F in summer and below freezing in winter.

"I thought it was supposed to be hot here." In January?

[alex985]

Originally Posted by tommyFL

Here's a climate misconception: places that are very hot in summer never get cold in winter. What is with all the people surprised that Arizona can get freezing nights, even in low elevation parts? If people understood the concepts of deserts, they wouldn't be shocked to find out a climate can get over 100 F in summer and below freezing in winter.

"I thought it was supposed to be hot here." In January?

When I lived in GA, you would see all the up-north types be surprised that it was chilly most of the time in winter. Despite having average lows around 30 F and highs of 50 F for the 3 winter months. It's like people think the only place that has seasons is north of like 39 N anywhere below that is 70 DEGREES ALL YEAR SAN DIEGO.......

[War Beagle]

Given their reputations, I was amazed the rainfall in Seattle and London receive. Seattle receives less rain than most of the eastern third of the US, presumably because it rains little during the summer. Does Seattle get much heavy rain during the rainy season or is it mostly drizzle?

The real mind-blower was that London only receives about 25 inches of rain per year. The first time I saw that I was certain it was a mistake. Does the reputation come from a near constant drizzle?

[divisionbyzero0]

Originally Posted by tommyFL

Here's a climate misconception: places that are very hot in summer never get cold in winter. What is with all the people surprised that Arizona can get freezing nights, even in low elevation parts? If people understood the concepts of deserts, they wouldn't be shocked to find out a climate can get over 100 F in summer and below freezing in winter.

"I thought it was supposed to be hot here." In January?

This. How many people who know that Mecca has coolish winter nights and can get quite chilly on occasions? Its avg Jan low is cooler than HNL at the same latitude and less than 300m/1000ft higher

[Infamous92]

I thought London (and the rest of the UK) was perpetually cool and damp. I also thought New Zealand's climate was more Australia's and/or California's. I also didn't know that much of the Midwest gets extremely cold in the winter, especially cities such as Minneapolis which see Alaska-level cold.

I'm a native, but even I thought New York's winters were colder and snowier than they actually are, this was before I actually paid attention to the weather. The winters here are still too cold for me, but I no longer exaggerate the average conditions, there are places that have it so much worse.

[Drake744]

I don't think people realize how much the temperature goes up in the inland LA/Orange County/San Diego areas. The "sunny and 72" concept usually just applies to the immediate coastal areas. You can go 10 miles inland and easily be pushing 90 degrees sometimes.