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If you put Sacramento and it’s weather in any southern, midwestern, or eastern locale across the USA people would rave about our weather.
Sacramento Summer:
Not nearly as hot as we or others exaggerate. During the last heat wave Sacramento was always cooler than anywhere else in the heat dome except for Coastal Cali and the mountains.
The desert southwest (Phoenix, Vegas,) is on average 20-30 degrees warmer during evening and morning hours and averages 10-20 degrees hotter during the day. The south, texas, florida and southwest bake in high humidity all summer long, and all night long.
Midwest and eastern seaboard cities are really humid during the summer - the daytime highs feel a lot warmer over there than our average summer high temps.
A 90 or 100 degree day in Sac feels more like a 80 or 90 degree in the rest of the humid east and south. So by high temps alone Sacramento appears a lot warmer than it is compared to other places.
Sacramento for the most part has cool summer nights and mornings.
A typical Sacramento Summer day is 90 degrees, dry 20% humidity (feels more like 87), with a very cool morning low of 55 degrees. The actual high temp doesn't represent how comfortable the rest of the evening and night temp will be as we cool quickly in the evening COMPARED to most other places across the USA.
That's funny I was just talking about this with someone last night. I totally agree, I've spent time in the south and the northeast during the summer, and once you start sweating in that humidity, you don't stop sweating. You may even have to shower multiple times a day, and change your clothes. It's a lot easier to cool down here, and other places that get hot usually don't have the luxury of a delta breeze at night. Last night in Phoenix it was 109 at 11:30 their time. Plus when it does get hot, it doesn't hurt that we have five rivers to choose from.
I do agree for the most part, but I think you're swaying a bit to the lower end of the spectrum to prove your point. I grew up on the east coast and I know firsthand how the humid summers can be miserable. When I go back east to visit in the summer and then come back here to Sacramento it feels refreshing due to the lower humidity and the usually cooler overnight temps. However, it's still typically pretty hot and uncomfortable here during the afternoon . Believe it or not but Sacramento does average 22 days per year of 100 degrees or higher (per the National Weather Service). Also a typical Sacramento summer day (based on NWS averages) is more in the 92 to 95 range and nights upper 50's and low 60's. I think your 'typical' 90/55 is low balling it just a bit. The NWS forecast low temps for downtown Sacramento tonight is 56 and Sac Executive airport is 54. Not quite 52 as you say , but it's still below normal and very nice for middle of July. Yes, it was interesting that Portland was way hotter than Sacramento today, but that's a fluke. There will always be anomalies and days where the temp can be way above or way below normal for any given city. So you can't really take a day like today when Sacramento was 15 degrees below average to prove that it's not as hot as people think. On July 4th the high temp in Sacramento was 110 and the high that day down in Palm Springs was also 110. So someone can say that Sacramento has scorching hot summers because it has the same temps as Palm Springs , when in reality it was a fluke and we were way above average that day. Overall I get what you're saying and agree that even though Sacramento does have hot summers , it's really not as bad here as many people make it seem. It can be much worse!
I do agree for the most part. I grew up on the east coast and I know firsthand how the humid summers can be miserable. When I go back east to visit in the summer and then come back here to Sacramento it feels refreshing due to the lower humidity and the usually cooler overnight temps. However, it's still typically pretty hot and uncomfortable here during the afternoon. Believe it or not but Sacramento does average 22 days per year of 100 degrees or higher (per the National Weather Service). Also a typical Sacramento summer day (based on NWS averages) is more in the 92 to 95 range and nights upper 50's and low 60's. I think your 'typical' 90/55 is low balling it just a bit. The NWS forecast low temps for downtown Sacramento tonight is 56 and Sac Executive airport is 54. Not quite 52 , but it's still below normal and very nice for middle of July. Yes, it was interesting that Portland was way hotter than Sacramento today, but that's a fluke. There will always be anomalies and days where the temp can be way above or way below normal for any given city. So you can't really take a day like today when Sacramento was 15 degrees below average to prove that it's not as hot as people think. On July 4th the high temp in Sacramento was 110 and the high that day down in Palm Springs was also 110. So someone can say that Sacramento has scorching hot summers because it has the same temps as Palm Springs , when in reality it was a fluke and we were way above average that day. Overall I get what you're saying and agree that even though Sacramento does have hot summers , it's really not as bad here as many people make it seem. It can be much worse!
Yep, you get the jist what I'm getting at. I didn't have the time to post all the interesting stats that prove Sacramento is much more comfortable than people are led to believe. I'll post later, you'll be surprised how many fewer days Sacramento has over 95 degrees compared to the rest of the USA, stats compiled over 30yrs.
I think the locals who never really have lived anywhere else don't know what a really cold snowy winter is like or a humid Florida summer is like where the nighttime temps never drops below 85 for 3months.
The 90/55 average was an estimate based on weather.com and national weather service. Keep in mind that if you look at heat index averages for the summer Sacramento numbers would be lower and southern, midwestern and eastern cities would be higher. So I think the 90/55 is a fair representation.
Yes, it was interesting that Portland was way hotter than Sacramento today, but that's a fluke. There will always be anomalies and days where the temp can be way above or way below normal for any given city. So you can't really take a day like today when Sacramento was 15 degrees below average to prove that it's not as hot as people think. Overall I get what you're saying and agree that even though Sacramento does have hot summers , it's really not as bad here as many people make it seem. It can be much worse!
I know it's fluke, but it's not a fluke when Sacramento's average low summer temps average near the same as Portland and Seattle. That's a fact, I would never have believed myself.
I've been thinking of posting a thread like this after last June which which was gloriously beautiful, and I didn't, then today happened, figured it was a good day to post.
You know we always complain when its just a tat too hot, but never rarely say anything after a month like June (half the month was in the 70's, 50's at night) or a day like today.
And, we complain that it is "muggy" when the humidity is above 20%, just about everywhere else in the USA anytime it's below 50% its considered dry.
Since I have never lived in any of the other regions mentioned, nor would I live there, even though I have visited, I personally don't find the other temp comparisons helpful. Of course, the weather in Cali is way better than most other places in the good ole USA. Weather is certainly one of the reasons why I love California.
Since you have not lived in the other regions mentioned than you have no idea how good you have it here, do you? -- concerning the weather.
Quote:
Originally Posted by caligirlz
I think the OP is confusing personal tolerance with her opinion, insinuating that those who don't agree with her are "exaggerating." I have no problem with having/ sharing an opinion, I just don't like it when it comes in the context of a negative judgment.
I didn’t post the comparison temps to help YOU in anyway, rather I posted them to support the title and reason for my thread.
If your personal tolerance is lacking concerning Sacramento’s weather then I can only imagine how intolerant it would be in the other locales I’ve compared with Sacramento. Perception is in the eye of the beholder, no negative judgement from me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by caligirlz
Overall, I find Sacramento's weather to be milder than the Central San Joaquin Valley, specifically Kern to Stanislaus Counties. I spent many years in those parts and I can no longer tolerate triple digits. I remember the day when it changed as I used to spend hours in the hottest hours of the day basking in the sun. The high temps literally make me sick now. It doesn't matter if I am in Hanford or Foslom, I don't tolerate it. Thankfully, I am quite resourceful in handling it.
Well, I'm glad you survived your days in the San Joaquin Valley and that you now have the resources to stay comfortable
Quote:
Originally Posted by caligirlz
I think the other thing that should be considered, is that it is hotter in the suburbs. It is hotter in Lincoln, Roseville & Folsom than in midtown. I check my cell phone, the outside thermometer on my car and the local weather stations to determine the true temperature in the suburbs. If you really want to make comparisons, it would be helpful to include these cities in the daily comparisons.
This thread is about Sacramento City, and the southern and western parts of Sacramento County. It’s not about Lincoln, Roseville nor El Dorado and Placer counties.
Quote:
Originally Posted by caligirlz
Edit: I will add that I spent my first 5 years in East Sac, on the 7th floor of the 4100 Folsom complex. My roomie didn't like using the AC even though she had it. I wilted. I was sooo sick. The circulation in her unit was awful, so fans & open windows did not cool down the place. I finally offered to pay the entire AC bill throughout the summer, she agreed, and it was so much better. Again, different levels of tolerance.
Not using the A/C on a hot day, on the 7th floor of a concrete building is just plain unwise and unhealthy just about anywhere across the USA. Most people would not tolerant that well. You made a wise decision to use the A/C.
Come back later in the week. It's forecasted to be 99 Thursday, 103 Friday, 105 Saturday, 101 Sunday in Sacramento. And it was just a week and a half ago when we had a string of 3-4 105+ days.
Come back later in the week. It's forecasted to be 99 Thursday, 103 Friday, 105 Saturday, 101 Sunday in Sacramento. And it was just a week and a half ago when we had a string of 3-4 105+ days.
Yeah, and the desert southwest and San Joaquin Valleyhas been 15-30 degrees hotter than Sacramento during those weeks. Phoenix has had over 80 days over 100 degrees. I'll post stats later.
I agree with you. But I imagine that's how it is everywhere. When the weather crappy, we're all down on it, and we forget what the averages are. The average for July is 93 degrees, which ain't cool, but I'm completely fine with and mean that a solid 18 hours of the day are reasonably comfortable, and all hours are acceptable in the shade. But I do get a little grumpy when it's over a hundred. One thing about living in a place with generally decent weather is that sometimes you set up a lifestyle that expects those things. So when it gets too hot and I can't bike anywhere without getting soaked in sweat, and my favorite bar and gym (separate places) are in old warehouses with crappy climate control, I do tend to stay in a little more. Oh well.
That people just Sacramento's weather for whatever reason is the same way they judge Sacramento in other areas where they always compare to the best possible Senario.
For example, Sacramento has "bad" weather.... then they ONLY compare it so central coast, even though Sac has better weather than almost everywhere else in the country.
Then next is Sacramento has poor nightlife or a poor dining scene....then only compare it to LA and San Francisco. No culture...then only compare it to LA or San Francisco. Etc.
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Plus when it does get hot, it doesn't hurt that we have five rivers to choose from.
Weather is certainly one of the reasons why I love California.
