Wettest cities in America [2 parts] (states, state)
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This is misleading because in Tampa and Miami, heck anywhere on the FL peninsula, it rains for 20-30 minutes up to an hour hard at around 4 pm, and other than that it's sunny. All the rain comes in heavy downpours, not light rain, and other than that it's sunny out virtually every day
It's not misleading, in terms of strictly what that data was showing - the average annual precipitation, and then the average number of days with rainfall. The factor you describe with regards to precipitation form is more of an understood concept - though there will indeed be more drawn out precipitation events with longer duration cloud cover whenever stronger tropical waves/depressions are involved.
The first question is easy to answer. I’m sure the answer is out there for the second, but it would require a little more digging, so I will leave it for someone else to answer.
City Inches of rain/year Rainy days/year
Honolulu 17” 89
Seattle 37” 152
Portland 37” 156
Houston 50” 104
New Orleans 62” 115
Tampa 46” 105
Miami 62” 135
So, on average, New Orleans gets the most inches of rain (62.45 vs Miami at 61.90) and Portland has the most rainy days. I’m not sure why Honolulu is on this list, it’s in the rain shadow on Oahu. It is part of what makes it so pleasant. Kaneohe on the other side of the Ko’olau Range gets 54 inches a year, and once got 247 consecutive days of rain.
New Orleans and Houston also have their rain distributed more evenly throughout the year. Seattle and Portland have dry summers and Miami has drier winters.
New Orleans and Houston also have their rain distributed more evenly throughout the year. Seattle and Portland have dry summers and Miami has drier winters.
Oh and don't forget about...
HURRICANES! (Houston, Miami, New Orleans, and Tampa can get them)
New Orleans and Houston also have their rain distributed more evenly throughout the year. Seattle and Portland have dry summers and Miami has drier winters.
In Houston, there will 4-5 days a year that get 4-5” of rain or more in one day. That accounts for 30-40% of the total annual precipitation. This is the case through out the Gulf Coast. There are plenty of sunny summer days with brief afternoon showers.
Location: Miami (prev. NY, Atlanta, SF, OC and San Diego)
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Good point...Miami receives the 5th most annual hours of sunshine (ahead of San Diego; Tampa places 11th) backing up your (and my earlier) statement that when it rains it pours for a relatively brief period (90%+ of the time) before turning sunny again...I prefer this over other places with prolonged periods/months of dreary and more spread out precipitation.
It is because of these heavy but concentrated downpours Miami can experience quite a bit of street flooding (magnified during King Tides, but other times as well, before receding).
Quote:
Originally Posted by NBTX11
This is misleading because in Tampa and Miami, heck anywhere on the FL peninsula, it rains for 20-30 minutes up to an hour hard at around 4 pm, and other than that it's sunny. All the rain comes in heavy downpours, not light rain, and other than that it's sunny out virtually every day
Last edited by elchevere; 01-25-2021 at 08:08 AM..
Lived in both Houston and Miami. I'd take Miami over Houston every day of the week. I can only imagine that New Orleans is even damper than Houston. For that reason, I'd choose New Orleans.
For those who say that humidity doesn't matter below a certain temperature, they're wrong. Humid cold weather is miserable as well. I'd agree that humidity within a narrow temperate range is less impactful. For me, that means in the 70s, but that range might be different for other folks.
HURRICANES! (Houston, Miami, New Orleans, and Tampa can get them)
In terms of rainfall events, I might actually say that Houston earns the title, as far as the records that we have at this time. The city, and it's surrounding regions, have witnessed a sizable concentration of America's most prolific rainfall events - which applies even when factoring in the Hawaiian Islands.
Tropical Storm Claudette (1979):
- 45.00 inches (1143 mm) at Alvin, TX
- 42.00 of those inches (1100mm) occurred in one day (US 24-hour rainfall record)
Tropical Storm Allison (2001):
- widespread 20.00-40.00 inch (508-1000mm) rainfall totals across Houston/SE Texas
- peak total was 40.68 inches (1033.3mm) in NW Jefferson County, TX.
Hurricane Harvey (2017):
- very prolific rainmaker, with widespread 40.00-60.00 inch (1000-1524mm) rainfall totals throughout Houston and SE Texas
- peak total of 60.58 inches (1538.7mm) at Nederland, TX (wettest tropical cyclone in US history, even including those that have struck Hawaii)
Tropical Storm Imelda (2019):
- rainfall event across Houston and SE Texas, with the greatest effects in the eastern areas
- rainfall totals up to 43.39 inches (1102mm) in Jefferson County, TX
In terms of rainfall events, I might actually say that Houston earns the title, as far as the records that we have at this time. The city, and it's surrounding regions, have witnessed a sizable concentration of America's most prolific rainfall events - which applies even when factoring in the Hawaiian Islands.
Tropical Storm Claudette (1979):
- 45.00 inches (1143 mm) at Alvin, TX
- 42.00 of those inches (1100mm) occurred in one day (US 24-hour rainfall record)
Tropical Storm Allison (2001):
- widespread 20.00-40.00 inch (508-1000mm) rainfall totals across Houston/SE Texas
- peak total was 40.68 inches (1033.3mm) in NW Jefferson County, TX.
Hurricane Harvey (2017):
- very prolific rainmaker, with widespread 40.00-60.00 inch (1000-1524mm) rainfall totals throughout Houston and SE Texas
- peak total of 60.58 inches (1538.7mm) at Nederland, TX (wettest tropical cyclone in US history, even including those that have struck Hawaii)
Tropical Storm Imelda (2019):
- rainfall event across Houston and SE Texas, with the greatest effects in the eastern areas
- rainfall totals up to 43.39 inches (1102mm) in Jefferson County, TX
Yep, it's pretty crazy, and damaging (over 100 billion dollars lost in Harvey).
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