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Summer Weather in Yellowknife Canada

Daily high temperatures are around 65°F, rarely falling below 48°F or exceeding 79°F. The highest daily average high temperature is 71°F on July 22.

Daily low temperatures increase by 4°F, from 42°F to 47°F, rarely falling below 33°F or exceeding 63°F. The highest daily average low temperature is 56°F on July 22.

For reference, on July 21, the hottest day of the year, temperatures in Yellowknife typically range from 56°F to 71°F, while on January 15, the coldest day of the year, they range from -21°F to -7°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in the Summer in Yellowknife

Average High and Low Temperature in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug10°F10°F20°F20°F30°F30°F40°F40°F50°F50°F60°F60°F70°F70°F80°F80°FSpringFallJul 2171°FJul 2171°F56°F56°FJun 160°FJun 160°F42°F42°FAug 3159°FAug 3159°F47°F47°FJul 169°FJul 169°F54°F54°F
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 summer temperatures. 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 the Summer in Yellowknife

Average Hourly Temperature in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug12 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 AMSpringFallvery coldvery coldcoldcoldcoolcomfortablefreezing
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.

Kogalym, Russia (3,811 miles away) and Markovo, Russia (3,874 miles) are the far-away foreign places with temperatures most similar to Yellowknife (view comparison).

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The summer in Yellowknife experiences gradually increasing cloud cover, with the percentage of time that the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy increasing from 48% to 54%. The lowest chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 45% on June 24.

The clearest day of the summer is June 24, with clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy conditions 55% of the time.

For reference, on November 17, the cloudiest day of the year, the chance of overcast or mostly cloudy conditions is 73%, while on June 24, the clearest day of the year, the chance of clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy skies is 55%.

Cloud Cover Categories in the Summer in Yellowknife

Cloud Cover Categories in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%SpringFallNov 1727%Nov 1727%Jun 152%Jun 152%Aug 3146%Aug 3146%Jul 154%Jul 154%Aug 153%Aug 153%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 Yellowknife, the chance of a wet day over the course of the summer is gradually increasing, starting the season at 19% and ending it at 21%.

For reference, the year's highest daily chance of a wet day is 21% on August 26, and its lowest chance is 6% on February 22.

Probability of Precipitation in the Summer in Yellowknife

Probability of Precipitation in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0%0%2%2%4%4%6%6%8%8%10%10%12%12%14%14%16%16%18%18%20%20%22%22%SpringFallAug 2421%Aug 2421%Jun 119%Jun 119%Jul 120%Jul 120%Aug 118%Aug 118%snowrainmixed
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 season and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day.

The average sliding 31-day rainfall during the summer in Yellowknife is essentially constant, remaining about 1.5 inches throughout, and rarely exceeding 3.2 inches or falling below 0.2 inches.

The highest average 31-day accumulation is 1.5 inches on July 3.

Average Monthly Rainfall in the Summer in Yellowknife

Average Monthly Rainfall in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0.0 in0.0 in0.5 in0.5 in1.0 in1.0 in1.5 in1.5 in2.0 in2.0 in2.5 in2.5 in3.0 in3.0 in3.5 in3.5 inSpringFallJul 31.5 inJul 31.5 inJun 11.4 inJun 11.4 inAug 311.4 inAug 311.4 inAug 11.4 inAug 11.4 in
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 the summer in Yellowknife, the length of the day is very rapidly decreasing. From the start to the end of the season, the length of the day decreases by 4 hours, 54 minutes, implying an average daily decrease of 3 minutes, 14 seconds, and weekly decrease of 22 minutes, 36 seconds.

The shortest day of the summer is August 31, with 14 hours, 24 minutes of daylight and the longest day is June 20, with 20 hours, 0 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in the Summer in Yellowknife

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0 hr24 hr4 hr20 hr8 hr16 hr12 hr12 hr16 hr8 hr20 hr4 hr24 hr0 hrSpringFall20 hr, 0 minJun 2020 hr, 0 minJun 20nightnightdayday14 hr, 24 minAug 3114 hr, 24 minAug 3117 hr, 22 minAug 117 hr, 22 minAug 1
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 summer in Yellowknife is 3:39 AM on June 19 and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 45 minutes later at 6:24 AM on August 31.

The latest sunset is 11:39 PM on June 21 and the earliest sunset is 2 hours, 51 minutes earlier at 8:48 PM on August 31.

Daylight saving time is observed in Yellowknife during 2024, but it neither starts nor ends during the summer, so the entire season is in standard time.

For reference, on June 20, the longest day of the year, the Sun rises at 3:39 AM and sets 20 hours, 0 minutes later, at 11:39 PM, while on December 21, the shortest day of the year, it rises at 10:07 AM and sets 4 hours, 57 minutes later, at 3:04 PM.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in the Summer in Yellowknife

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMSpringFall3:39 AM3:39 AM11:38 PMJun 1911:38 PMJun 196:24 AM6:24 AM8:48 PMAug 318:48 PMAug 313:57 AM3:57 AM11:15 PMJun 111:15 PMJun 15:01 AM5:01 AM10:23 PMAug 110:23 PMAug 1SolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunset
The solar day in the summer. 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 the Summer in Yellowknife

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug12 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 AMSpringFall00102020303040500010102030304040
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth in the the summer of 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 the summer of 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 the Summer in Yellowknife

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug12 AM12 AM4 AM4 AM8 AM8 AM12 PM12 PM4 PM4 PM8 PM8 PM12 AM12 AMSpringFallMay 79:23 PMMay 79:23 PMMay 237:54 AMMay 237:54 AMJun 66:38 AMJun 66:38 AMJul 54:58 PMJul 54:58 PMJul 214:18 AMJul 214:18 AMAug 45:14 AMAug 45:14 AMAug 1912:26 PMAug 1912:26 PMSep 27:56 PMSep 27:56 PMSep 178:35 PMSep 178:35 PM4:40 AM4:40 AM10:32 PM10:32 PM2:21 AM2:21 AM12:00 AM12:00 AM12:00 AM12:00 AM12:00 AM12:00 AM10:53 PM10:53 PM5:01 AM5:01 AM8:55 PM8:55 PM7:53 PM7:53 PM8:03 AM8:03 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.

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 Yellowknife is essentially constant during the summer, remaining around 0% throughout.

For reference, on July 27, the muggiest day of the year, there are muggy conditions 0% of the time, while on January 1, the least muggy day of the year, there are muggy conditions 0% of the time.

Humidity Comfort Levels in the Summer in Yellowknife

Humidity Comfort Levels in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%SpringFallAug 110%Aug 110%Jun 10%Jun 10%Aug 310%Aug 310%Jul 10%Jul 10%comfortablecomfortabledrydry
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 Yellowknife is essentially constant during the summer, remaining within 0.6 miles per hour of 10.8 miles per hour throughout.

For reference, on May 2, the windiest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 12.2 miles per hour, while on December 23, the calmest day of the year, the daily average wind speed is 9.1 miles per hour.

The lowest daily average wind speed during the summer is 10.3 miles per hour on July 19.

Average Wind Speed in the Summer in Yellowknife

Average Wind Speed in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0 mph0 mph5 mph5 mph10 mph10 mph15 mph15 mphSpringFallJul 1910.3 mphJul 1910.3 mphJun 111.4 mphJun 111.4 mphAug 3111.1 mphAug 3111.1 mphJul 110.6 mphJul 110.6 mph
The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

The wind direction in Yellowknife during the summer is predominantly out of the east from June 1 to July 6 and the south from July 6 to August 31.

Wind Direction in the Summer in Yellowknife

Wind Direction in the Summer in YellowknifeESJunJulAug0%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%SpringFallwestsoutheastnorth
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 Yellowknife typically lasts for 4.0 months (123 days), from around May 22 to around September 22, rarely starting before May 6 or after June 6, and rarely ending before September 4 or after October 9.

The summer in Yellowknife is more likely than not fully within the growing season, with the chance that a given day is in the growing season reaching a high of 100% on July 18.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in the Summer in Yellowknife

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in the Summer in Yellowknifegrowing seasonJunJulAug0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%SpringFall79%Jun 179%Jun 195%Aug 3195%Aug 31100%Jul 1100%Jul 1100%Aug 1100%Aug 150%May 2250%May 2250%Sep 2250%Sep 22May 610%May 610%Jul 18100%Jul 18100%very coldcoldcoolcomfortablefrigidwarm
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 Yellowknife are rapidly increasing during the summer, increasing by 891°F, from 65°F to 956°F, over the course of the season.

Growing Degree Days in the Summer in Yellowknife

Growing Degree Days in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug200°F200°F400°F400°F600°F600°F800°F800°F1,000°F1,000°FSpringFallJun 165°FJun 165°FAug 31956°FAug 31956°FJul 1307°FJul 1307°FAug 1700°FAug 1700°F
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of the summer, 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 Yellowknife is very rapidly decreasing during the summer, falling by 2.5 kWh, from 6.0 kWh to 3.5 kWh, over the course of the season.

The highest average daily incident shortwave solar energy during the summer is 6.3 kWh on June 22.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in the Summer in Yellowknife

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in the Summer in YellowknifeJunJulAug0 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWhSpringFallJun 226.3 kWhJun 226.3 kWhJun 16.0 kWhJun 16.0 kWhAug 313.5 kWhAug 313.5 kWhAug 15.3 kWhAug 15.3 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 Yellowknife are 62.454 deg latitude, -114.372 deg longitude, and 623 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Yellowknife contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 184 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 595 feet. Within 10 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (292 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (673 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Yellowknife is covered by sparse vegetation (35%), water (24%), trees (23%), and bare soil (10%), within 10 miles by trees (71%) and water (22%), and within 50 miles by trees (54%) and water (33%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Yellowknife, 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 2 weather stations near enough to contribute to our estimation of the temperature and dew point in Yellowknife.

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

Please review our full terms contained on our Terms of Service page.