Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Niu China

In Niu, the summers are long, comfortable, and mostly cloudy and the winters are short, very cold, dry, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 18°F to 73°F and is rarely below 12°F or above 79°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Niu for warm-weather activities is from late May to late June.

The warm season lasts for 4.0 months, from May 18 to September 19, with an average daily high temperature above 67°F. The hottest month of the year in Niu is June, with an average high of 72°F and low of 52°F.

The cold season lasts for 2.7 months, from December 2 to February 23, with an average daily high temperature below 49°F. The coldest month of the year in Niu is January, with an average low of 19°F and high of 44°F.

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

The clearer part of the year in Niu begins around September 17 and lasts for 9.1 months, ending around June 19.

The clearest month of the year in Niu is November, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 84% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around June 19 and lasts for 2.9 months, ending around September 17.

The cloudiest month of the year in Niu is August, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 69% 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 Niu varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.3 months, from June 7 to September 15, with a greater than 22% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Niu is July, with an average of 13.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.7 months, from September 15 to June 7. The month with the fewest wet days in Niu is January, with an average of 0.1 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 Niu is July, with an average of 13.0 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 44% on July 16.

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. Niu experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 4.8 months, from May 8 to October 2, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Niu is July, with an average rainfall of 3.4 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 7.2 months, from October 2 to May 8. The month with the least rain in Niu is January, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Niu varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 10 hours, 15 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 14 hours, 3 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:55 AM on June 10, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 57 minutes later at 6:51 AM on January 12. The earliest sunset is at 4:56 PM on December 1, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 4 minutes later at 7:00 PM on July 1.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Niu during 2024.

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.

The perceived humidity level in Niu, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, remaining a virtually constant 0% throughout.

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 Niu experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.5 months, from December 17 to May 1, with average wind speeds of more than 6.4 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Niu is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.3 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.5 months, from May 1 to December 17. The calmest month of the year in Niu is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.1 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 5.6 months, from May 10 to October 28, with a peak percentage of 68% on June 26. The wind is most often from the west for 6.4 months, from October 28 to May 10, with a peak percentage of 63% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Niu 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 time of year to visit Niu for general outdoor tourist activities is from late May to late June, with a peak score in the second week of June.

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 Niu for hot-weather activities is for the entire month of June, with a peak score in the second week of June.

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 Niu typically lasts for 6.3 months (193 days), from around April 13 to around October 23, rarely starting before March 22 or after May 3, and rarely ending before October 9 or after November 6.

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 Niu should appear around April 16, only rarely appearing before April 2 or after April 30.

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 2.4 months, from April 14 to June 26, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.6 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Niu is May, with an average of 8.2 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.8 months, from November 8 to February 1, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 5.2 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Niu is December, with an average of 4.5 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Niu are 29.568 deg latitude, 91.030 deg longitude, and 11,909 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Niu contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,578 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 12,035 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (6,483 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (8,868 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Niu is covered by grassland (68%) and water (11%), within 10 miles by grassland (78%), and within 50 miles by grassland (84%).