Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Zhangbei China

In Zhangbei, the summers are long, warm, and partly cloudy and the winters are frigid, snowy, windy, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from -3°F to 81°F and is rarely below -12°F or above 89°F.

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

The warm season lasts for 4.0 months, from May 14 to September 13, with an average daily high temperature above 68°F. The hottest month of the year in Zhangbei is July, with an average high of 80°F and low of 57°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.1 months, from November 22 to February 26, with an average daily high temperature below 31°F. The coldest month of the year in Zhangbei is January, with an average low of -2°F and high of 19°F.

In Zhangbei, 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 Zhangbei begins around September 4 and lasts for 5.9 months, ending around March 1.

The clearest month of the year in Zhangbei is December, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 76% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around March 1 and lasts for 6.1 months, ending around September 4.

The cloudiest month of the year in Zhangbei is June, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 43% 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 Zhangbei varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.8 months, from May 29 to September 22, with a greater than 18% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Zhangbei is July, with an average of 10.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.2 months, from September 22 to May 29. The month with the fewest wet days in Zhangbei 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. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation in Zhangbei changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 7.5 months, from March 22 to November 4. The month with the most days of rain alone in Zhangbei is July, with an average of 10.5 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 4.5 months, from November 4 to March 22. The month with the most days of snow alone in Zhangbei is November, with an average of 0.5 days.

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. Zhangbei experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 5.8 months, from April 21 to October 15, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Zhangbei is July, with an average rainfall of 2.9 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 6.2 months, from October 15 to April 21. The month with the least rain in Zhangbei is January, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches.

Snowfall

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

The snowy period of the year lasts for 2.1 weeks, from October 31 to November 15, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Zhangbei is November, with an average snowfall of 1.0 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 12 months, from November 15 to October 31. The least snow falls around July 21, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Zhangbei varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 12 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 15 hours, 9 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:47 AM on June 14, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 59 minutes later at 7:46 AM on January 5. The earliest sunset is at 4:52 PM on December 8, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 6 minutes later at 7:57 PM on June 27.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Zhangbei 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 Zhangbei, 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, staying within 1% of 1% 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 Zhangbei experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.6 months, from October 15 to June 3, with average wind speeds of more than 10.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Zhangbei is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 12.8 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.4 months, from June 3 to October 15. The calmest month of the year in Zhangbei is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.6 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 3.9 months, from May 29 to September 26, with a peak percentage of 51% on July 25. The wind is most often from the north for 1.0 weeks, from September 26 to October 3 and for 5.8 months, from December 5 to May 29, with a peak percentage of 34% on October 2. The wind is most often from the west for 2.1 months, from October 3 to December 5, with a peak percentage of 46% on November 17.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Zhangbei 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 Zhangbei for general outdoor tourist activities is from early July to mid August, with a peak score in the last week of July.

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 Zhangbei for hot-weather activities is from early July to early August, with a peak score in the last week of July.

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 Zhangbei typically lasts for 4.2 months (131 days), from around May 14 to around September 21, rarely starting before April 28 or after May 29, and rarely ending before September 6 or after October 7.

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 Zhangbei should appear around May 2, only rarely appearing before April 23 or after May 11.

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 3.5 months, from April 14 to July 30, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.2 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Zhangbei is May, with an average of 6.9 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.0 months, from November 2 to February 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.3 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Zhangbei is December, with an average of 2.4 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Zhangbei are 41.153 deg latitude, 114.708 deg longitude, and 4,580 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Zhangbei contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 174 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 4,572 feet. Within 10 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,024 feet). Within 50 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (5,259 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Zhangbei is covered by cropland (42%), artificial surfaces (25%), grassland (13%), and trees (12%), within 10 miles by cropland (43%) and trees (30%), and within 50 miles by cropland (33%) and grassland (30%).