Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Zhongyuan China

In Zhongyuan, the summers are warm, oppressive, wet, and mostly cloudy and the winters are very cold, snowy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 29°F to 84°F and is rarely below 22°F or above 89°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Zhongyuan for warm-weather activities is from mid August to early October.

The warm season lasts for 3.2 months, from June 6 to September 13, with an average daily high temperature above 75°F. The hottest month of the year in Zhongyuan is July, with an average high of 83°F and low of 71°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.1 months, from December 3 to March 6, with an average daily high temperature below 48°F. The coldest month of the year in Zhongyuan is January, with an average low of 30°F and high of 40°F.

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

The clearer part of the year in Zhongyuan begins around September 2 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around March 11.

The clearest month of the year in Zhongyuan is December, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 70% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around March 11 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around September 2.

The cloudiest month of the year in Zhongyuan is July, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 72% 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 Zhongyuan varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 6.5 months, from February 14 to August 31, with a greater than 32% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Zhongyuan is June, with an average of 14.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 5.5 months, from August 31 to February 14. The month with the fewest wet days in Zhongyuan is December, with an average of 5.1 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 Zhongyuan is June, with an average of 14.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 50% on June 20.

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. Zhongyuan experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Zhongyuan. The month with the most rain in Zhongyuan is June, with an average rainfall of 9.8 inches.

The month with the least rain in Zhongyuan is January, with an average rainfall of 1.1 inches.

Snowfall

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

The snowy period of the year lasts for 4.4 months, from November 28 to April 9, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Zhongyuan is February, with an average snowfall of 9.5 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 7.6 months, from April 9 to November 28. The least snow falls around July 21, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Zhongyuan varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 10 hours, 18 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 13 hours, 59 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:21 AM on June 10, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 54 minutes later at 7:14 AM on January 12. The earliest sunset is at 5:22 PM on December 2, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 0 minutes later at 7:22 PM on July 1.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Zhongyuan 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.

Zhongyuan experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 4.5 months, from May 10 to September 25, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 25% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Zhongyuan is July, with 30.4 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Zhongyuan is January, with 0.0 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 Zhongyuan experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 3.5 months, from January 31 to May 13, with average wind speeds of more than 6.1 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Zhongyuan is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.7 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 8.5 months, from May 13 to January 31. The calmest month of the year in Zhongyuan is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.6 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 1.1 months, from April 23 to May 25 and for 2.3 months, from June 2 to August 12, with a peak percentage of 58% on July 11. The wind is most often from the east for 1.1 weeks, from May 25 to June 2, with a peak percentage of 30% on June 1. The wind is most often from the north for 8.4 months, from August 12 to April 23, with a peak percentage of 56% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Zhongyuan 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 Zhongyuan for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid August to early 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 Zhongyuan for hot-weather activities is from mid July to late August, with a peak score in the first 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 Zhongyuan typically lasts for 8.4 months (256 days), from around March 14 to around November 25, rarely starting before February 24 or after March 31, and rarely ending before November 6 or after December 12.

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 Zhongyuan should appear around April 2, only rarely appearing before March 18 or after April 14.

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 some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 4.8 months, from April 27 to September 20, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Zhongyuan is June, with an average of 5.5 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from November 9 to February 15, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.6 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Zhongyuan is December, with an average of 3.2 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Zhongyuan are 28.862 deg latitude, 114.984 deg longitude, and 1,932 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Zhongyuan contains extreme variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 3,350 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 2,627 feet. Within 10 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (5,259 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (5,787 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Zhongyuan is covered by trees (78%) and grassland (11%), within 10 miles by trees (82%) and grassland (11%), and within 50 miles by trees (69%) and cropland (17%).