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October Weather in Fargo North Dakota, United States

Daily high temperatures decrease by 16°F, from 64°F to 47°F, rarely falling below 32°F or exceeding 77°F.

Daily low temperatures decrease by 12°F, from 43°F to 31°F, rarely falling below 19°F or exceeding 55°F.

For reference, on July 23, the hottest day of the year, temperatures in Fargo typically range from 61°F to 83°F, while on January 15, the coldest day of the year, they range from 2°F to 19°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in October in Fargo

Average High and Low Temperature in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310°F0°F10°F10°F20°F20°F30°F30°F40°F40°F50°F50°F60°F60°F70°F70°F80°F80°F90°F90°FSepNovOct 164°FOct 164°F43°F43°FOct 3147°FOct 3147°F31°F31°FOct 1159°FOct 1159°F40°F40°FOct 2153°FOct 2153°F36°F36°FNowNow
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 October. 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 October in Fargo

Average Hourly Temperature in October in FargoOct112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 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 AMSepNovNowNowfreezingvery coldcoldcoolcomfortable
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.

Samara, Russia (5,260 miles away) and Jilin, China (5,640 miles) are the far-away foreign places with temperatures most similar to Fargo (view comparison).

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The month of October in Fargo experiences increasing cloud cover, with the percentage of time that the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy increasing from 41% to 50%.

The clearest day of the month is October 1, with clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy conditions 59% of the time.

For reference, on February 3, the cloudiest day of the year, the chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 63%, while on July 26, the clearest day of the year, the chance of clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy skies is 74%.

Cloud Cover Categories in October in Fargo

Cloud Cover Categories in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%SepNovOct 159%Oct 159%Oct 3150%Oct 3150%Oct 1155%Oct 1155%Oct 2152%Oct 2152%NowNowclearmostly 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 Fargo, the chance of a wet day over the course of October is very rapidly decreasing, starting the month at 20% and ending it at 10%.

For reference, the year's highest daily chance of a wet day is 39% on June 13, and its lowest chance is 5% on January 28.

Over the course of October in Fargo, the chance of a day with only rain decreases from 20% to 9%, the chance of a day with mixed snow and rain remains an essentially constant 1% throughout, and the chance of a day with only snow remains an essentially constant 0% throughout.

Probability of Precipitation in October in Fargo

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 October in Fargo is decreasing, starting the month at 1.9 inches, when it rarely exceeds 4.2 inches or falls below 0.3 inches, and ending the month at 1.0 inches, when it rarely exceeds 2.6 inches or falls below 0.1 inches.

Average Monthly Rainfall in October in Fargo

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.

Over the course of October in Fargo, the length of the day is rapidly decreasing. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day decreases by 1 hour, 36 minutes, implying an average daily decrease of 3 minutes, 12 seconds, and weekly decrease of 22 minutes, 25 seconds.

The shortest day of the month is October 31, with 10 hours, 3 minutes of daylight and the longest day is October 1, with 11 hours, 39 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in October in Fargo

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 earliest sunrise of the month in Fargo is 7:26 AM on October 1 and the latest sunrise is 42 minutes later at 8:09 AM on October 31.

The latest sunset is 7:05 PM on October 1 and the earliest sunset is 54 minutes earlier at 6:11 PM on October 31.

Daylight saving time is observed in Fargo during 2024, but it neither starts nor ends during October, so the entire month is in daylight saving time.

For reference, on June 20, the longest day of the year, the Sun rises at 5:32 AM and sets 15 hours, 53 minutes later, at 9:25 PM, while on December 21, the shortest day of the year, it rises at 8:09 AM and sets 8 hours, 31 minutes later, at 4:41 PM.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in October in Fargo

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight and Daylight Saving Time in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031312 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMSepNov7:26 AM7:26 AMOct 17:05 PMOct 17:05 PM8:09 AM8:09 AMOct 316:11 PMOct 316:11 PM7:40 AM7:40 AMOct 116:46 PMOct 116:46 PM7:54 AM7:54 AMOct 216:28 PMOct 216:28 PMSolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunsetNowNow
The solar day over the course of October. 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 October in Fargo

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in October in FargoOct112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 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 AMSepNov0010102020203040000101020203030NowNow
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of October 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 October 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 October in Fargo

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in October in FargoOct112233445566778899101011111212131314141515161617171818191920202121222223232424252526262727282829293030313112 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMSepNovSep 28:56 PMSep 28:56 PMSep 179:35 PMSep 179:35 PMOct 21:50 PMOct 21:50 PMOct 176:27 AMOct 176:27 AMNov 17:48 AMNov 17:48 AMNov 153:29 PMNov 153:29 PM6:09 AM6:09 AM8:10 PM8:10 PM7:32 PM7:32 PM7:45 AM7:45 AM7:17 AM7:17 AM7:00 PM7:00 PM6:11 PM6:11 PM8:03 AM8:03 AM8:26 AM8:26 AM5:57 PM5:57 PM4:24 PM4:24 PM8:52 AM8:52 AMNowNow
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.
Oct 2024IlluminationMoonriseMoonsetMoonriseMeridian PassingDistance
1
1%6:12 AME6:46 PMW-12:32 PMS252,356 mi
2
0%7:17 AME7:00 PMW-1:10 PMS252,597 mi
3
1%8:22 AMESE7:14 PMWSW-1:49 PMS252,408 mi
4
4%9:28 AMESE7:31 PMWSW-2:30 PMS251,778 mi
5
8%10:36 AMESE7:51 PMWSW-3:14 PMS250,679 mi
6
15%11:46 AMSE8:16 PMSW-4:01 PMS249,072 mi
7
22%12:55 PMSE8:50 PMSW-4:53 PMS246,927 mi
8
32%2:01 PMSE9:35 PMSW-5:48 PMS244,238 mi
9
42%2:58 PMSE10:32 PMSW-6:45 PMS241,048 mi
10
50%3:45 PMSE11:42 PMSW-7:44 PMS237,467 mi
11
64%4:22 PMSE--8:41 PMS233,680 mi
12
75%-1:01 AMSW4:51 PMESE9:36 PMS229,952 mi
13
84%-2:23 AMWSW5:14 PMESE10:29 PMS226,600 mi
14
92%-3:47 AMWSW5:34 PME11:20 PMS223,964 mi
15
95%-5:11 AMW5:52 PME--
16
98%-6:36 AMW6:11 PME12:11 AMS222,347 mi
17
100%-8:03 AMWNW6:32 PMENE1:02 AMS221,965 mi
18
99%-9:32 AMWNW6:58 PMENE1:55 AMS222,891 mi
19
95%-11:00 AMNW7:30 PMNE2:52 AMS225,041 mi
20
88%-12:23 PMNW8:13 PMNE3:51 AMS228,180 mi
21
79%-1:35 PMNW9:08 PMNE4:52 AMS231,971 mi
22
69%-2:32 PMNW10:14 PMNE5:52 AMS236,036 mi
23
59%-3:14 PMNW11:26 PMNE6:49 AMS240,023 mi
24
50%-3:44 PMNW-7:41 AMS243,652 mi
25
38%12:39 AMENE4:07 PMWNW-8:29 AMS246,730 mi
26
29%1:49 AMENE4:25 PMWNW-9:12 AMS249,150 mi
27
20%2:57 AMENE4:40 PMWNW-9:53 AMS250,876 mi
28
13%4:03 AME4:54 PMW-10:32 AMS251,927 mi
29
7%5:08 AME5:08 PMW-11:10 AMS252,358 mi
30
3%6:13 AME5:22 PMWSW-11:49 AMS252,244 mi
31
1%7:18 AMESE5:38 PMWSW-12:29 PMS251,664 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 Fargo is essentially constant during October, remaining around 0% throughout.

For reference, on July 18, the muggiest day of the year, there are muggy conditions 25% of the time, while on October 26, the least muggy day of the year, there are muggy conditions 0% of the time.

Humidity Comfort Levels in October in Fargo

Humidity Comfort Levels in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%SepNovOct 10%Oct 10%Oct 310%Oct 310%Oct 110%Oct 110%Oct 210%Oct 210%NowNowhumidhumiddrydrymuggymuggycomfortablecomfortable
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 Fargo is essentially constant during October, remaining within 0.2 miles per hour of 11.4 miles per hour throughout.

For reference, on March 31, the windiest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 12.6 miles per hour, while on July 26, the calmest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 9.1 miles per hour.

The highest daily average wind speed during October is 11.6 miles per hour on October 17.

Average Wind Speed in October in Fargo

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 Fargo throughout October is predominantly from the south, with a peak proportion of 34% on October 31.

Wind Direction in October in Fargo

Wind Direction in October in FargoSNSOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%SepNovNowNowwestsouthnortheast
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).

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 Fargo typically lasts for 5.0 months (152 days), from around May 4 to around October 3, rarely starting before April 15 or after May 22, and rarely ending before September 14 or after October 23.

During October in Fargo, the chance that a given day is within the growing season is very rapidly decreasing falling from 55% to 3% over the course of the month.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in October in Fargo

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%SepNov55%Oct 155%Oct 1Oct 313%Oct 313%Oct 1129%Oct 1129%Oct 2112%Oct 2112%90%Sep 1490%Sep 14NowNowfrigidfreezingvery coldcoldcoolcomfortablehot
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 Fargo are gradually increasing during October, increasing by 90°F, from 2,466°F to 2,556°F, over the course of the month.

Growing Degree Days in October in Fargo

Growing Degree Days in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031312,100°F2,100°F2,200°F2,200°F2,300°F2,300°F2,400°F2,400°F2,500°F2,500°F2,600°F2,600°F2,700°F2,700°F2,800°F2,800°FSepNovOct 12,466°FOct 12,466°FOct 312,556°FOct 312,556°FOct 112,513°FOct 112,513°FOct 212,542°FOct 212,542°FNowNow
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of October, 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 Fargo is decreasing during October, falling by 1.4 kWh, from 3.7 kWh to 2.3 kWh, over the course of the month.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in October in Fargo

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in October in FargoOct11223344556677889910101111121213131414151516161717181819192020212122222323242425252626272728282929303031310 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWhSepNovOct 13.7 kWhOct 13.7 kWhOct 312.3 kWhOct 312.3 kWhOct 113.2 kWhOct 113.2 kWhOct 212.7 kWhOct 212.7 kWhNowNow
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 Fargo are 46.877 deg latitude, -96.790 deg longitude, and 902 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Fargo is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 43 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 898 feet. Within 10 miles is also essentially flat (75 feet). Within 50 miles is essentially flat (846 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Fargo is covered by artificial surfaces (99%), within 10 miles by cropland (83%) and artificial surfaces (16%), and within 50 miles by cropland (91%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Fargo, 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 3 weather stations near enough to contribute to our estimation of the temperature and dew point in Fargo.

For each station, the records are corrected for the elevation difference between that station and Fargo 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 Fargo is computed as the weighted average of the individual contributions from each station, with weights proportional to the inverse of the distance between Fargo 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 Fargo 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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