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Seattle is more famous for its rainy weather, but probably it is because it is more famous as a city? Both of them are in the PNW area so I guess Portland is no slouch either in terms of cloudy/rainy days? Which city do you prefer in terms of weather, Seattle or Portland?
Seattle is significantly more foggy - that's really the only major difference. Portland is not spared the famous PNW gloom.
The other slight difference is that Seattle is on the water and stays cool from the breeze during the summer whereas Portland is in a valley and stays hotter. These are slight differences that really only manifest during days of extreme heat. I believe last summer Portland set a record heat at about 107 degrees; Seattle also broke a record but about at around 100 degrees.
Due to longitude and proximity to water/valley, Seattle's summers are slightly cooler and slightly shorter, Portland's are hotter but longer (which I prefer - I'll take as much summer as I can get).
Seattle is significantly more foggy - that's really the only major difference. Portland is not spared the famous PNW gloom.
The other slight difference is that Seattle is on the water and stays cool from the breeze during the summer whereas Portland is in a valley and stays hotter. These are slight differences that really only manifest during days of extreme heat. I believe last summer Portland set a record heat at about 107 degrees; Seattle also broke a record but about at around 100 degrees.
Due to longitude and proximity to water/valley, Seattle's summers are slightly cooler and slightly shorter, Portland's are hotter but longer (which I prefer - I'll take as much summer as I can get).
Agreed on the summer description. I've spent some time in both places however, the weather between the two are pretty similar...
Not much difference between the two cities since they are only about 150 miles apart. Seattle is cooler during summer but not that much [maybe 5 degrees] since it is situation on the Puget Sound water. Portland is 100 miles inland from the ocean so it can be fairly warm during summer [near 80F]. On the other hand, since Seattle is right on the water it probably gets less cold on winter nights than Portland. The Pacific NW has one of best summers of any region in the U.S. and makes up for the long periods of winter gloom.
Everything mentioned so far is pretty right on the mark. Portland is slightly warmer on average during the summer and slightly colder in winter, but the differences are small. One winter difference is Portland gets more ice storms as occasionally cold air comes from the east through the Columbia River Gorge and mixes with rainfall. This can be quite localized and sometimes only affects the northern part of the city nearest the Columbia. Seattle makes up for it with slightly more snowfall on average. However snowfall is usually just a once or twice occurrance during the winter in both cities, some winters bring none at all.
John, lol, I am a big fan of sarcasm, and I did appreciate your amusing point. However, sometimes cities that are relatively close together have different climatic features. Seattle and Portland have some, but the differences are not major.
There are many US locales that are close together than have much bigger differences. San Francisco compared to almost anywhere 10-20 miles to the east or south are a good example. Add 10-20 degrees during the warm season. Likewise, Seattle is often described as a city of "cool breezes" off the Sound, but you don't have to go too far inland to be much warmer in the summer, or colder in the winter. These local variances can seem small, but to locals, much more important.
But, as a former OK resident, I will agree the differences between OKC and Tulsa are small as well. Except when you dig deeper and find that tornadoes strike OKC more frequently than Tulsa. Yes, closely distanced cities tend to have similar weather, but there can be signficant differences. But only to us weather geeks!
Seattle is significantly more foggy - that's really the only major difference. Portland is not spared the famous PNW gloom.
The other slight difference is that Seattle is on the water and stays cool from the breeze during the summer whereas Portland is in a valley and stays hotter. These are slight differences that really only manifest during days of extreme heat. I believe last summer Portland set a record heat at about 107 degrees; Seattle also broke a record but about at around 100 degrees.
Due to longitude and proximity to water/valley, Seattle's summers are slightly cooler and slightly shorter, Portland's are hotter but longer (which I prefer - I'll take as much summer as I can get).
Seattle got to 103 or 104 last summer, but I remember it was a couple of degrees less than Portland.
I love Seattle's summers--75-80 degrees, warm enough for shorts and a t-shirt yet not too hot. I imagine Portland's summers are very similar, but i havent spent much time in Portland during the summer...
John, lol, I am a big fan of sarcasm, and I did appreciate your amusing point. However, sometimes cities that are relatively close together have different climatic features. Seattle and Portland have some, but the differences are not major.
There are many US locales that are close together than have much bigger differences. San Francisco compared to almost anywhere 10-20 miles to the east or south are a good example. Add 10-20 degrees during the warm season. Likewise, Seattle is often described as a city of "cool breezes" off the Sound, but you don't have to go too far inland to be much warmer in the summer, or colder in the winter. These local variances can seem small, but to locals, much more important.
But, as a former OK resident, I will agree the differences between OKC and Tulsa are small as well. Except when you dig deeper and find that tornadoes strike OKC more frequently than Tulsa. Yes, closely distanced cities tend to have similar weather, but there can be signficant differences. But only to us weather geeks!
Good call, weather in the bay area can have a dramatic range, sometimes only 20 miles away it's sunny and 15 degrees warmer!
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