Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Belle Plaine United States

In Belle Plaine, the summers are warm; the winters are freezing, snowy, and windy; and it is partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 12°F to 82°F and is rarely below -8°F or above 90°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Belle Plaine for warm-weather activities is from mid June to early September.

The warm season lasts for 3.8 months, from May 22 to September 16, with an average daily high temperature above 71°F. The hottest month of the year in Belle Plaine is July, with an average high of 82°F and low of 61°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.3 months, from November 27 to March 5, with an average daily high temperature below 38°F. The coldest month of the year in Belle Plaine is January, with an average low of 12°F and high of 27°F.

In Belle Plaine, 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 Belle Plaine begins around June 9 and lasts for 4.1 months, ending around October 14.

The clearest month of the year in Belle Plaine is August, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 67% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 14 and lasts for 7.9 months, ending around June 9.

The cloudiest month of the year in Belle Plaine is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 58% 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 Belle Plaine varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 6.0 months, from April 5 to October 4, with a greater than 25% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Belle Plaine is June, with an average of 11.4 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.0 months, from October 4 to April 5. The month with the fewest wet days in Belle Plaine is February, with an average of 3.6 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 Belle Plaine changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 9.7 months, from February 22 to December 14. The month with the most days of rain alone in Belle Plaine is June, with an average of 11.4 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 2.3 months, from December 14 to February 22. The month with the most days of snow alone in Belle Plaine is January, with an average of 2.4 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. Belle Plaine experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 10 months, from February 19 to December 31, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Belle Plaine is June, with an average rainfall of 3.7 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 1.7 months, from December 31 to February 19. The month with the least rain in Belle Plaine is January, with an average rainfall of 0.3 inches.

Snowfall

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

The snowy period of the year lasts for 5.1 months, from November 8 to April 11, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Belle Plaine is December, with an average snowfall of 4.5 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 6.9 months, from April 11 to November 8. The least snow falls around August 1, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Belle Plaine varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 8 hours, 48 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 15 hours, 35 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:08 AM on June 15, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 26 minutes later at 7:34 AM on November 2. The earliest sunset is at 4:13 PM on December 9, and the latest sunset is 4 hours, 30 minutes later at 8:44 PM on June 26.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Belle Plaine during 2024, starting in the spring on March 10, lasting 7.8 months, and ending in the fall on November 3.

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.

Belle Plaine experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.4 months, from June 5 to September 18, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 8% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Belle Plaine is July, with 9.2 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is February 16, when muggy conditions are essentially unheard of.

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 Belle Plaine experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 7.9 months, from September 23 to May 18, with average wind speeds of more than 10.1 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Belle Plaine is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 11.8 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 4.1 months, from May 18 to September 23. The calmest month of the year in Belle Plaine is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.5 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 1.6 months, from March 2 to April 19, with a peak percentage of 33% on March 7. The wind is most often from the east for 3.9 weeks, from April 19 to May 16, with a peak percentage of 28% on April 25. The wind is most often from the west for 9.5 months, from May 16 to March 2, with a peak percentage of 45% on January 1.

Belle Plaine is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 2.5 months, from July 7 to September 22, with an average temperature above 62°F. The month of the year in Belle Plaine with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 69°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 5.2 months, from December 1 to May 9, with an average temperature below 42°F. The month of the year in Belle Plaine with the coolest water is March, with an average temperature of 35°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Belle Plaine 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 Belle Plaine for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid June to early September, with a peak score in the first week of August.

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 Belle Plaine for hot-weather activities is from early July to mid August, with a peak score in the third 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 Belle Plaine typically lasts for 5.2 months (159 days), from around May 1 to around October 8, rarely starting before April 13 or after May 19, and rarely ending before September 21 or after October 26.

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 Belle Plaine should appear around April 25, only rarely appearing before April 14 or after May 10.

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 extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.5 months, from May 4 to August 19, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.9 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Belle Plaine is June, with an average of 6.8 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.5 months, from October 27 to February 11, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.6 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Belle Plaine is December, with an average of 1.5 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Belle Plaine are 44.715 deg latitude, -88.666 deg longitude, and 850 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Belle Plaine contains only modest variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 121 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 834 feet. Within 10 miles also contains only modest variations in elevation (322 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (1,296 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Belle Plaine is covered by cropland (71%), trees (17%), and herbaceous vegetation (10%), within 10 miles by cropland (52%) and trees (28%), and within 50 miles by cropland (43%) and trees (37%).