Is Arizona usually this humid/wet. (Phoenix, Tucson: transplants, living, to move)

[miamiman]

I just moved to North Scottsdale from New Jersey this May, for a change of scenery, including weather. I loved the extreme heat and the almost constant sunshine that was present until about three weeks ago.

However, I have been visiting a friend in Tucson for a week, and have noticed that it has been raining buckets nearly EVERY DAY. The beautiful, sunny days have been replaced by largely overcast days, cool (if not cold) temperatures, and high humidity. If it's not raining directly in Tucson, it's raining somewhere closeby to Tucson.

Whenever it rain the temperature drops from the mid or upper 80s down into the lower 70s in the middle of the day. The dewpoint temperature has been anywhere from 65-72 degrees making it feel like I'm back in NJ.

Is monsoon season usually like this? And, if so, when will the cloudless, warm days return?

[Boatdrinks]

Welcome to monsoon This weather will probably last though August. My first summer here, I HATED it like you. I felt like I was back in DC. People who'd lived her a long time loved the gray days and rain and I couldn't figure out why. Now I know. After 4 yrs here, and almost constant blue skies and sunshine 10 months a year, I've started looking forward to monsoon. It's just about 2 months out of the year and a fun change of pace. The storms are amazing to watch and the cloud cover makes for cooler temps.

Believe me - I know exactly how you're feeling. But don't worry. Monsoon will be over soon and we'll be back to blue skies and sunshine every day. And I'll bet, if you're still living here in a few years, you'll start looking forward to monsoon too

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by miamiman

Is monsoon season usually like this? And, if so, when will the cloudless, warm days return?

Hang in there, Miamiman . . .

Generally speaking, give or take a few days, Labor Day brings the end of the Monsoons. Then, amazingly enough, lots of sunshine and single digit humidity will return and we'll be back to normal.

Although it's been ten years since I relocated to Tucson, I have yet to learn to appreciate this "ugh" time of year.

[gman4gov]

Tucson mainly pulls the jet stream from the Pacific, leading to stronger rains in Tucson, than Phx and most other parts of Arizona. Phoenix has always been typically 10 degrees hotter than Tucson the last seven years, so if you want the extreme heat, it's probably best to stay North during the Summer time months . However, I do think your definitely in the minority, since most Arizonans welcome rain in the desert any time.

[miamiman]

I thought monsoon season meant occasional thunderstorms every couple of days, along with hot temperatures. I guess the grey skies, cool weather, and humidity caught me off guard. I guess I haven't been here long enough to get tired of the sunshine, but maybe it will happen after a couple of years. Haha. I'm looking forward to Labor Day when the humidity goes down and the blue skies return.

I am definitely in the minority, but I was loving those 110-113 degree days we were having late last month and the beginning of this month. I guess I will just have to wait until next year to experience them.

[Valley Native]

( * sigh *)

Well, I suppose it's time to give the transplants yet another lessson on the summer monsoon.

The monsoon is not an individual storm, nor is it exactly a rainy season. The definition of a monsoon is a seasonal wind shift. During the majority of the year in Arizona, the prevaling wind direction is west to east ... but around the early to middle part of July, the direction of the prevaling wind shifts to an easterly or southerly flow. This allows some moisture from Mexico to move into the region. Combine the intense daytime heating with the increased humidity, and convective type of storms develop over the higher terrain. This season often lasts until about the early to middle part of September.

The regions which are most affected by the monsoon seem to be eastern Arizona and much of New Mexico. The southeast part of AZ (including Tucson), as well as the eastern White Mountains receive a good share of precipitation during the summer ... however, in Phoenix, most of the eight inches of rain during the year falls in the winter months (December through March).

I would imagine the newcomers would love our seemingly never ending sunshine. Give it a few years. I've lived here for 43 years, and I can honestly say that rainy spells here are a welcome relief from the constant sunny, hot days. Very few people seem to know (or care) that we're in a prolonged drought due to eight out of the last ten winters have been drier than normal ... and eight out of the past ten summers have also been drier than usual.

[miamiman]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

( * sigh *)

Well, I suppose it's time to give the transplants yet another lessson on the summer monsoon.

The monsoon is not an individual storm, nor is it exactly a rainy season. The definition of a monsoon is a seasonal wind shift. During the majority of the year in Arizona, the prevaling wind direction is west to east ... but around the early to middle part of July, the direction of the prevaling wind shifts to an easterly or southerly flow. This allows some moisture from Mexico to move into the region. Combine the intense daytime heating with the increased humidity, and convective type of storms develop over the higher terrain. This season often lasts until about the early to middle part of September.

The regions which are most affected by the monsoon seem to be eastern Arizona and much of New Mexico. The southeast part of AZ (including Tucson), as well as the eastern White Mountains receive a good share of precipitation during the summer ... however, in Phoenix, most of the eight inches of rain during the year falls in the winter months (December through March).

I would imagine the newcomers would love our seemingly never ending sunshine. Give it a few years. I've lived here for 43 years, and I can honestly say that rainy spells here are a welcome relief from the constant sunny, hot days. Very few people seem to know (or care) that we're in a prolonged drought due to eight out of the last ten winters have been drier than normal ... and eight out of the past ten summers have also been drier than usual.

I apologize for forcing you to read and respond to my post about the dreary weather we have been experiencing. I know that the monsoon is a seasonal wind shift and that it taps moisture from the Pacific and the Gulfs of California and Mexico, but I didn't know the extent of monsoon here in southern Arizona. My friend has had almost 4 inches of rain fall in the past week at his house, which I believe is quite abnormal for any desert area of Arizona. Additionally, the cloudy days have reminded me of winter back in New Jersey. When I have witnessed summer thunderstorms in other parts of the country the day will start out sunny, you have a thunderstorm, and the sun pops out within an hour or two. Here in Tucson the days starts out cloudy, we get as many as three or four heavy downpours with thunder and lightning, and then it remains cloudly until sunset. Additionally, having temperatures around 70 degrees at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, in July, has been quite surprising. For a state that has the most sunshine of any state and "blistering" summer heat in the country that proved to be a shock for me.

I am sorry if you believe that I am just another transplant who moved here without any knowledge of the climate. Believe me, I knew about the monsoon, I was just surprised at its strength. Lastly, if you and the other natives here are so knowledgeable about this extreme drought, please note that there is no reason to run sprinklers all night after you receive more than an inch of rain and the lawn is already flooded. That's a waste of water, and that's what will be the main source of problems in a couple years when you all run out of water.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by miamiman

I apologize for forcing you to read and respond to my post about the dreary weather we have been experiencing. I know that the monsoon is a seasonal wind shift and that it taps moisture from the Pacific and the Gulfs of California and Mexico, but I didn't know the extent of monsoon here in southern Arizona. My friend has had almost 4 inches of rain fall in the past week at his house, which I believe is quite abnormal for any desert area of Arizona. Additionally, the cloudy days have reminded me of winter back in New Jersey. When I have witnessed summer thunderstorms in other parts of the country the day will start out sunny, you have a thunderstorm, and the sun pops out within an hour or two. Here in Tucson the days starts out cloudy, we get as many as three or four heavy downpours with thunder and lightning, and then it remains cloudly until sunset. Additionally, having temperatures around 70 degrees at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, in July, has been quite surprising. For a state that has the most sunshine of any state and "blistering" summer heat in the country that proved to be a shock for me.

I am sorry if you believe that I am just another transplant who moved here without any knowledge of the climate. Believe me, I knew about the monsoon, I was just surprised at its strength. Lastly, if you and the other natives here are so knowledgeable about this extreme drought, please note that there is no reason to run sprinklers all night after you receive more than an inch of rain and the lawn is already flooded. That's a waste of water, and that's what will be the main source of problems in a couple years when you all run out of water.

Grey and dreary are not typical of monsoon days even in Tucson. It is usually sunny till late in the afternoon when storms roll off of higher terrain into the deserts. It clears up over night with a few debris clouds remaining in the morning. It has been an unusually wet beginning to things this year. It won't last. There will be a return to more normal pattern - hot, muggy, sun, wind, and dust with little rain. Only people starved for weather could enjoy it.

BTW - the Pacific has nothing to do with the monsoon. In fact, the seasonal blocking of Pacific air is part of the equation that leads to the summer rains. Valley Native correctly pointed out that the moisture source is to the east and south for the most part with an occasional surge from the Gulf of California.

[MotleyCrew]

A very good point about water use Miamiman.

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by miamiman

I am definitely in the minority, but I was loving those 110-113 degree days we were having late last month and the beginning of this month. I guess I will just have to wait until next year to experience them.

Cheer up, Miamiman . . . only about four or five more weeks of this stuff.

Believe me, not in the minority . . . even after ten years, I STILL HATE THE MONSOONS.

However, there is one positive . . . LESS DUST INSIDE!