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February Weather in Detroit Michigan, United States

Daily high temperatures increase by 7°F, from 32°F to 39°F, rarely falling below 19°F or exceeding 54°F.

Daily low temperatures increase by 6°F, from 20°F to 26°F, rarely falling below 6°F or exceeding 38°F.

For reference, on July 18, the hottest day of the year, temperatures in Detroit typically range from 67°F to 83°F, while on January 29, the coldest day of the year, they range from 20°F to 31°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in February in Detroit

The daily average high (red line) and low (blue line) temperature, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding average perceived temperatures.

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the hourly average temperatures for the quarter of the year centered on February. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

Average Hourly Temperature in February in Detroit

Average Hourly Temperature in February in DetroitFeb1122334455667788991010111112121313141415151616171718181919202021212222232324242525262627272828292912 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMJanMarfreezingvery coldcold
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

Odessa, Ukraine (5,088 miles away); Damāvand, Iran (6,353 miles); and Kakunodatemachi, Japan (6,159 miles) are the far-away foreign places with temperatures most similar to Detroit (view comparison).

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The month of February in Detroit experiences gradually decreasing cloud cover, with the percentage of time that the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy decreasing from 63% to 57%.

The clearest day of the month is February 29, with clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy conditions 43% of the time.

For reference, on January 10, the cloudiest day of the year, the chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 63%, while on August 9, the clearest day of the year, the chance of clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy skies is 68%.

Cloud Cover Categories in February in Detroit

Cloud Cover Categories in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanMarFeb 137%Feb 137%Feb 2943%Feb 2943%Feb 1139%Feb 1139%Feb 2141%Feb 2141%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercast
0% clear 20% mostly clear 40% partly cloudy 60% mostly cloudy 80% overcast 100%
The percentage of time spent in each cloud cover band, categorized by the percentage of the sky covered by clouds.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. In Detroit, the chance of a wet day over the course of February is increasing, starting the month at 16% and ending it at 20%.

For reference, the year's highest daily chance of a wet day is 36% on June 12, and its lowest chance is 16% on February 3.

Over the course of February in Detroit, the chance of a day with only rain increases from 6% to 11%, the chance of a day with mixed snow and rain remains an essentially constant 3% throughout, and the chance of a day with only snow remains an essentially constant 7% throughout.

Probability of Precipitation in February in Detroit

The percentage of days in which various types of precipitation are observed, excluding trace quantities: rain alone, snow alone, and mixed (both rain and snow fell in the same day).

Rainfall

To show variation within the month and not just the monthly total, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day.

The average sliding 31-day rainfall during February in Detroit is gradually increasing, starting the month at 0.7 inches, when it rarely exceeds 1.7 inches, and ending the month at 1.0 inches, when it rarely exceeds 2.1 inches or falls below 0.3 inches.

Average Monthly Rainfall in February in Detroit

The average rainfall (solid line) accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted line is the corresponding average snowfall.

Snowfall

As with rainfall, we consider the snowfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day.

The average sliding 31-day snowfall during February in Detroit is gradually decreasing, starting the month at 4.8 inches, when it rarely exceeds 10.7 inches or falls below 0.5 inches, and ending the month at 4.3 inches, when it rarely exceeds 9.3 inches or falls below 0.2 inches.

The highest average 31-day accumulation is 4.9 inches on February 14.

Average Monthly Snowfall in February in Detroit

The average snowfall (solid line) accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted line is the corresponding average rainfall.

Over the course of February in Detroit, the length of the day is rapidly increasing. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day increases by 1 hour, 14 minutes, implying an average daily increase of 2 minutes, 38 seconds, and weekly increase of 18 minutes, 25 seconds.

The shortest day of the month is February 1, with 10 hours, 0 minutes of daylight and the longest day is February 29, with 11 hours, 13 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in February in Detroit

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290 hr24 hr4 hr20 hr8 hr16 hr12 hr12 hr16 hr8 hr20 hr4 hr24 hr0 hrJanMarnightnightdaydayFeb 110 hr, 0 minFeb 110 hr, 0 minFeb 2911 hr, 13 minFeb 2911 hr, 13 min
The number of hours during which the Sun is visible (black line). From bottom (most yellow) to top (most gray), the color bands indicate: full daylight, twilight (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and full night.

The latest sunrise of the month in Detroit is 7:46 AM on February 1 and the earliest sunrise is 38 minutes earlier at 7:08 AM on February 29.

The earliest sunset is 5:45 PM on February 1 and the latest sunset is 36 minutes later at 6:21 PM on February 29.

Daylight saving time is observed in Detroit during 2024, but it neither starts nor ends during February, so the entire month is in standard time.

For reference, on June 20, the longest day of the year, the Sun rises at 5:55 AM and sets 15 hours, 17 minutes later, at 9:12 PM, while on December 21, the shortest day of the year, it rises at 7:58 AM and sets 9 hours, 5 minutes later, at 5:02 PM.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in February in Detroit

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829292 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMJanMar7:08 AM7:08 AMFeb 296:21 PMFeb 296:21 PM7:46 AM7:46 AMFeb 15:45 PMFeb 15:45 PM7:34 AM7:34 AMFeb 115:58 PMFeb 115:58 PMSolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunset
The solar day over the course of February. From bottom to top, the black lines are the previous solar midnight, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, and the next solar midnight. The day, twilights (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and night are indicated by the color bands from yellow to gray.

The figure below presents a compact representation of the sun's elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon) and azimuth (its compass bearing) for every hour of every day in the reporting period. The horizontal axis is the day of the year and the vertical axis is the hour of the day. For a given day and hour of that day, the background color indicates the azimuth of the sun at that moment. The black isolines are contours of constant solar elevation.

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in February in Detroit

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in February in DetroitFeb1122334455667788991010111112121313141415151616171718181919202021212222232324242525262627272828292912 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMJanMar0010102020203030405000010102020303040
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of February 2024. The black lines are lines of constant solar elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon, in degrees). The background color fills indicate the azimuth (the compass bearing) of the sun. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries of the cardinal compass points indicate the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for February 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. The label associated with each bar indicates the date and time that the phase is obtained, and the companion time labels indicate the rise and set times of the Moon for the nearest time interval in which the moon is above the horizon.

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in February in Detroit

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in February in DetroitFeb1122334455667788991010111112121313141415151616171718181919202021212222232324242525262627272828292912 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMJanMarJan 116:58 AMJan 116:58 AMJan 2512:55 PMJan 2512:55 PMFeb 96:00 PMFeb 96:00 PMFeb 247:31 AMFeb 247:31 AMMar 105:01 AMMar 105:01 AMMar 253:01 AMMar 253:01 AM8:36 AM8:36 AM5:26 PM5:26 PM5:27 PM5:27 PM8:47 AM8:47 AM7:49 AM7:49 AM5:39 PM5:39 PM5:27 PM5:27 PM7:37 AM7:37 AM8:10 AM8:10 AM8:12 PM8:12 PM7:25 PM7:25 PM7:38 AM7:38 AM
The time in which the moon is above the horizon (light blue area), with new moons (dark gray lines) and full moons (blue lines) indicated. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.
Feb 2024IlluminationMoonriseMoonsetMoonriseMeridian PassingDistance
1
65%-10:45 AMWSW-5:14 AMS249,076 mi
2
50%12:46 AMESE11:07 AMWSW-5:57 AMS246,594 mi
3
45%1:52 AMESE11:33 AMWSW-6:43 AMS243,431 mi
4
34%3:02 AMESE12:06 PMSW-7:34 AMS239,726 mi
5
24%4:12 AMSE12:50 PMSW-8:31 AMS235,702 mi
6
15%5:20 AMSE1:46 PMSW-9:33 AMS231,667 mi
7
8%6:20 AMSE2:56 PMSW-10:38 AMS227,989 mi
8
2%7:10 AMSE4:15 PMWSW-11:42 AMS225,048 mi
9
0%7:49 AMESE5:39 PMWSW-12:44 PMS223,158 mi
10
1%8:21 AMESE7:02 PMWSW-1:41 PMS222,504 mi
11
5%8:48 AMESE8:23 PMW-2:34 PMS223,116 mi
12
12%9:11 AME9:42 PMW-3:24 PMS224,867 mi
13
21%9:34 AME10:59 PMWNW-4:13 PMS227,513 mi
14
32%9:58 AMENE--5:02 PMS230,747 mi
15
43%-12:15 AMWNW10:25 AMENE5:52 PMS234,257 mi
16
50%-1:30 AMWNW10:56 AMENE6:44 PMS237,765 mi
17
65%-2:43 AMNW11:33 AMNE7:38 PMS241,059 mi
18
74%-3:50 AMNW12:19 PMNE8:33 PMS243,996 mi
19
83%-4:49 AMNW1:13 PMNE9:28 PMS246,500 mi
20
90%-5:39 AMNW2:13 PMNE10:20 PMS248,546 mi
21
95%-6:18 AMNW3:18 PMENE11:08 PMS250,145 mi
22
98%-6:50 AMWNW4:23 PMENE11:54 PMS251,318 mi
23
99%-7:16 AMWNW5:27 PMENE--
24
100%-7:37 AMWNW6:30 PMENE12:36 AMS252,083 mi
25
100%-7:56 AMW7:31 PME1:16 AMS252,443 mi
26
97%-8:14 AMW8:32 PME1:55 AMS252,377 mi
27
93%-8:32 AMW9:33 PME2:34 AMS251,845 mi
28
88%-8:50 AMWSW10:36 PMESE3:13 AMS250,795 mi
29
80%-9:10 AMWSW11:41 PMESE3:54 AMS249,176 mi

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.

The chance that a given day will be muggy in Detroit is essentially constant during February, remaining around 0% throughout.

For reference, on July 31, the muggiest day of the year, there are muggy conditions 37% of the time, while on November 15, the least muggy day of the year, there are muggy conditions 0% of the time.

Humidity Comfort Levels in February in Detroit

Humidity Comfort Levels in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%JanMarFeb 150%Feb 150%Feb 10%Feb 10%Feb 290%Feb 290%drydry
dry 55°F comfortable 60°F humid 65°F muggy 70°F oppressive 75°F miserable
The percentage of time spent at various humidity comfort levels, categorized by dew point.

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 Detroit is essentially constant during February, remaining within 0.2 miles per hour of 13.0 miles per hour throughout.

For reference, on January 12, the windiest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 13.6 miles per hour, while on August 3, the calmest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 8.1 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in February in Detroit

The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

The hourly average wind direction in Detroit throughout February is predominantly from the west, with a peak proportion of 46% on February 1.

Wind Direction in February in Detroit

Wind Direction in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%JanMarwestsoutheastnorth
northeastsouthwest
The percentage of hours in which the mean wind direction is from each of the four cardinal wind directions, excluding hours in which the mean wind speed is less than 1.0 mph. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries are the percentage of hours spent in the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

Detroit 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 surface water temperature in Detroit is essentially constant during February, remaining around 33°F throughout.

The lowest average surface water temperature during February is 33°F on February 14.

Average Water Temperature in February in Detroit

Average Water Temperature in February in DetroitFeb1122334455667788991010111112121313141415151616171718181919202021212222232324242525262627272828292931°F31°F32°F32°F33°F33°F34°F34°F35°F35°F36°F36°F37°F37°F38°F38°F39°F39°F40°F40°FJanMarFeb 1433°FFeb 1433°FFeb 133°FFeb 133°FFeb 2933°FFeb 2933°F
The daily average water temperature (purple line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

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 Detroit typically lasts for 6.6 months (200 days), from around April 14 to around November 1, rarely starting before March 30 or after April 30, and rarely ending before October 13 or after November 19.

The month of February in Detroit is reliably fully outside of the growing season.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in February in Detroit

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanMar0%Feb 150%Feb 15Mar 3010%Mar 3010%0%Feb 50%Feb 5frigidfreezingvery coldcoldcool
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The percentage of time spent in various temperature bands. The black line is the percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season.

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.

The average accumulated growing degree days in Detroit are essentially constant during February, remaining within 2°F of 3°F throughout.

Growing Degree Days in February in Detroit

The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of February, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

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 in Detroit is increasing during February, rising by 1.1 kWh, from 2.2 kWh to 3.3 kWh, over the course of the month.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in February in Detroit

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in February in DetroitFeb112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829290 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWhJanMarFeb 12.2 kWhFeb 12.2 kWhFeb 293.3 kWhFeb 293.3 kWhFeb 112.5 kWhFeb 112.5 kWh
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter (orange line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Detroit are 42.331 deg latitude, -83.046 deg longitude, and 597 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Detroit is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 62 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 596 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (105 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (797 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Detroit is covered by artificial surfaces (83%) and water (15%), within 10 miles by artificial surfaces (69%), and within 50 miles by cropland (32%) and water (26%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Detroit, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

Temperature and Dew Point

There are 4 weather stations near enough to contribute to our estimation of the temperature and dew point in Detroit.

For each station, the records are corrected for the elevation difference between that station and Detroit according to the International Standard Atmosphere , and by the relative change present in the MERRA-2 satellite-era reanalysis between the two locations.

The estimated value at Detroit is computed as the weighted average of the individual contributions from each station, with weights proportional to the inverse of the distance between Detroit and a given station.

The stations contributing to this reconstruction are:

To get a sense of how much these sources agree with each other, you can view a comparison of Detroit and the stations that contribute to our estimates of its temperature history and climate. Please note that each source's contribution is adjusted for elevation and the relative change present in the MERRA-2 data.

Other Data

All data relating to the Sun's position (e.g., sunrise and sunset) are computed using astronomical formulas from the book, Astronomical Algorithms 2nd Edition , by Jean Meeus.

All other weather data, including cloud cover, precipitation, wind speed and direction, and solar flux, come from NASA's MERRA-2 Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis . This reanalysis combines a variety of wide-area measurements in a state-of-the-art global meteorological model to reconstruct the hourly history of weather throughout the world on a 50-kilometer grid.

Land Use data comes from the Global Land Cover SHARE database , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Elevation data comes from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) , published by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Names, locations, and time zones of places and some airports come from the GeoNames Geographical Database .

Time zones for airports and weather stations are provided by AskGeo.com .

Maps are © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

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