Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Kinston United States

In Kinston, the summers are hot and muggy, the winters are short and cold, and it is wet and partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 35°F to 90°F and is rarely below 22°F or above 96°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best times of year to visit Kinston for warm-weather activities are from late April to early June and from late August to mid October.

The hot season lasts for 3.7 months, from May 23 to September 15, with an average daily high temperature above 83°F. The hottest month of the year in Kinston is July, with an average high of 90°F and low of 72°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from December 1 to February 28, with an average daily high temperature below 61°F. The coldest month of the year in Kinston is January, with an average low of 36°F and high of 54°F.

In Kinston, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Kinston begins around August 24 and lasts for 3.0 months, ending around November 26.

The clearest month of the year in Kinston is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 64% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 26 and lasts for 9.0 months, ending around August 24.

The cloudiest month of the year in Kinston is February, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 50% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Kinston varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.5 months, from May 25 to September 10, with a greater than 36% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Kinston is July, with an average of 15.4 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.5 months, from September 10 to May 25. The month with the fewest wet days in Kinston is November, with an average of 6.6 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Kinston is July, with an average of 15.4 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 52% on August 5.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Kinston experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Kinston. The month with the most rain in Kinston is August, with an average rainfall of 5.1 inches.

The month with the least rain in Kinston is November, with an average rainfall of 2.7 inches.

Snowfall

As with rainfall, we consider the snowfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Kinston experiences some seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 2.3 months, from December 25 to March 3, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Kinston is January, with an average snowfall of 1.5 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 9.7 months, from March 3 to December 25. The least snow falls around July 29, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Kinston varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 47 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 14 hours, 32 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:55 AM on June 12, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 38 minutes later at 7:33 AM on November 2. The earliest sunset is at 4:57 PM on December 4, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 31 minutes later at 8:29 PM on June 28.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Kinston during 2024, starting in the spring on March 10, lasting 7.8 months, and ending in the fall on November 3.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

Kinston experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 4.7 months, from May 16 to October 7, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 23% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Kinston is July, with 26.9 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Kinston is February, with 0.1 days that are muggy or worse.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Kinston experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.5 months, from November 4 to May 18, with average wind speeds of more than 8.0 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Kinston is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.5 months, from May 18 to November 4. The calmest month of the year in Kinston is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.5 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Kinston varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the south for 5.3 months, from March 19 to August 27, with a peak percentage of 42% on July 13. The wind is most often from the east for 1.7 weeks, from August 27 to September 8, with a peak percentage of 30% on September 6. The wind is most often from the north for 6.4 months, from September 8 to March 19, with a peak percentage of 37% on January 1.

Kinston is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.1 months, from June 16 to September 20, with an average temperature above 77°F. The month of the year in Kinston with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 81°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.0 months, from December 17 to April 19, with an average temperature below 64°F. The month of the year in Kinston with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 61°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Kinston throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Kinston for general outdoor tourist activities are from late April to early June and from late August to mid October, with a peak score in the third week of September.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Kinston for hot-weather activities is from early June to mid September, with a peak score in the last week of August.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

The growing season in Kinston typically lasts for 7.7 months (234 days), from around March 21 to around November 10, rarely starting before March 1 or after April 12, and rarely ending before October 23 or after November 30.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

Based on growing degree days alone, the first spring blooms in Kinston should appear around February 6, only rarely appearing before January 19 or after February 26.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.9 months, from April 9 to August 5, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Kinston is May, with an average of 6.6 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.9 months, from November 10 to February 6, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.3 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Kinston is December, with an average of 2.5 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Kinston are 35.263 deg latitude, -77.582 deg longitude, and 39 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Kinston is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 69 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 44 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (128 feet). Within 50 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (315 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Kinston is covered by artificial surfaces (69%), cropland (17%), and trees (12%), within 10 miles by cropland (62%) and trees (27%), and within 50 miles by cropland (45%) and trees (38%).