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Haha, I had the exact same thoughts! Then I learned that even shows like Seinfield are filmed in LA, a place with 3200 hours which makes even Perth appear sort of cloudy.
I've often said by world standards the US is indeed a sunny place, and the stats seem to back that up. Even an average eastern or southern city gets 2600-2800 hours, higher than most Australian capitals (thought of by people as a 'sunny' country; yes by area, but most populated parts of Oz aren't all that sunny really).
What do you mean Nz is at the 'top' of the cool maritime heirarchy?
Cool west coast maritime climates -UK, BC, PNW, Northwest Europe, Southern Chile. I don't know if northern Portugal is in this group. I would think some NZ climates would have the best overall climate of this group, although others might disagree.
Keep in mind here in the Eastern USA people rag that cities like NYC (2700 hours of sunshine annually) or Sumter, SC (3000 hrs of sunshine annually) are "cloudy" compared to the Southwestern USA (Yuma, Phoenix, Tucson...etc) which get closer to 4000 hours of sunshine annually. So much of this is persepective.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stoney63
The States are spoilt for choice as far as Climate/sunshine goes. I don't think 4000hrs would be to my liking, but 2700hrs sounds almost perfect to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trimac20
I've often said by world standards the US is indeed a sunny place, and the stats seem to back that up. Even an average eastern or southern city gets 2600-2800 hours, higher than most Australian capitals
I remember being very surprised when I first read that the sunniest place in the world was not someone "exotic" like the vast deserts in Africa or Arabia but the American Southwest (Yuma), a region being so close (perhaps in a worldwide sense) to the notoriously cloudy Pacific Northwest. As mentioned before many times on the forums, at least with climactic diversity, there is something to be said about American exceptionalism.
I remember being very surprised when I first read that the sunniest place in the world was not someone "exotic" like the vast deserts in Africa or Arabia but the American Southwest (Yuma), a region being so close (perhaps in a worldwide sense) to the notoriously cloudy Pacific Northwest. As mentioned before many times on the forums, at least with climactic diversity, there is something to be said about American exceptionalism.
There must be parts of the eastern Sahara that run it close - I'm not sure what places are measuring it there.
I remember being very surprised when I first read that the sunniest place in the world was not someone "exotic" like the vast deserts in Africa or Arabia but the American Southwest (Yuma), a region being so close (perhaps in a worldwide sense) to the notoriously cloudy Pacific Northwest. As mentioned before many times on the forums, at least with climactic diversity, there is something to be said about American exceptionalism.
Couldn't agree more, I know the US is 38 times the size of the UK but the amount of microclimates and weather-related records that relatively small fraction of the world's surface holds is amazing, especially considering as well as the sun record it could possible have a dullness record somewhere in the Aleutians, but unless I'm shown proof to the contrary I'm still claiming that our very own Kinlochewe with its 800-and-whatever hours a year is not the world's dullest place but the "currently permanently inhabited place with the fewest recorded sun hours a year regardless of sun blocked by mountains"
Couldn't agree more, I know the US is 38 times the size of the UK but the amount of microclimates and weather-related records that relatively small fraction of the world's surface holds is amazing, especially considering as well as the sun record it could possible have a dullness record somewhere in the Aleutians, but unless I'm shown proof to the contrary I'm still claiming that our very own Kinlochewe with its 800-and-whatever hours a year is not the world's dullest place but the "currently permanently inhabited place with the fewest recorded sun hours a year regardless of sun blocked by mountains"
For uninhabited locations, some sun maps show (speculate?) areas in the southern oceans as well as the far north Atlantic (possibly others I can't remember) with < 500 hours annually.
For uninhabited locations, some sun maps show (speculate?) areas in the southern oceans as well as the far north Atlantic (possibly others I can't remember) with < 500 hours annually.
If Campbell Island and Bjornoya both have around 600 I can believe it. Re. Bjornoya, I haven't looked it up on the map but I was surprised how dull it was considering Longyearbyen has 1300 or so and presumably isn't that far away. I heard once the North Pole is ridiculously overcast, but have never been able to find data.
If Campbell Island and Bjornoya both have around 600 I can believe it. Re. Bjornoya, I haven't looked it up on the map but I was surprised how dull it was considering Longyearbyen has 1300 or so and presumably isn't that far away. I heard once the North Pole is ridiculously overcast, but have never been able to find data.
This could be helpful, but more detail would be nice. Note the North Pole numbers. It's hard to see how the South Pole averages even 40% cloud cover - would like to know more about the mechanisms that produce this.
I remember being very surprised when I first read that the sunniest place in the world was not someone "exotic" like the vast deserts in Africa or Arabia but the American Southwest (Yuma), a region being so close (perhaps in a worldwide sense) to the notoriously cloudy Pacific Northwest. As mentioned before many times on the forums, at least with climactic diversity, there is something to be said about American exceptionalism.
Talking about the sunshine of the US, there's a thread on the NYC forum about how bad the weather is and how horribly dreary and cloudy it is (from 2500 hours!) I've tried telling people there NYC is actually quite good. Helps that I lived in a place quite a bit cloudier (upstate NY) and haven't really visited sunnier places much.
Some people in Massachusetts complain how cloudy it is.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ben86
If Campbell Island and Bjornoya both have around 600 I can believe it. Re. Bjornoya, I haven't looked it up on the map but I was surprised how dull it was considering Longyearbyen has 1300 or so and presumably isn't that far away. I heard once the North Pole is ridiculously overcast, but have never been able to find data.
Yes Campbell Island gets something like 650 hours a year, which is pretty paltry. Cloudiness increases rapidly below 40'S in the southern hemisphere. Invercargill gets 1580 and Stewart Island less than 1400. Parts of Tasmania average about 1600 hours, but that equates to about 260 cloudy days and less than 24 clear days a year (about two per month).
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