Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Fort Payne Alabama, United States

In Fort Payne, the summers are hot and muggy, the winters are very cold and wet, and it is partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 32°F to 88°F and is rarely below 18°F or above 95°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best times of year to visit Fort Payne for warm-weather activities are from mid May to early July and from late July to early October.

The hot season lasts for 3.8 months, from May 27 to September 19, with an average daily high temperature above 80°F. The hottest month of the year in Fort Payne is July, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.0 months, from November 28 to February 27, with an average daily high temperature below 58°F. The coldest month of the year in Fort Payne is January, with an average low of 32°F and high of 51°F.

In Fort Payne, 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 Fort Payne begins around June 7 and lasts for 5.5 months, ending around November 21.

The clearest month of the year in Fort Payne is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 65% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around November 21 and lasts for 6.5 months, ending around June 7.

The cloudiest month of the year in Fort Payne is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 54% 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 Fort Payne varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 5.0 months, from March 20 to August 21, with a greater than 32% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Fort Payne is July, with an average of 12.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 7.0 months, from August 21 to March 20. The month with the fewest wet days in Fort Payne is October, with an average of 6.8 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 Fort Payne is July, with an average of 12.5 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 43% on July 9.

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. Fort Payne experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Fort Payne. The month with the most rain in Fort Payne is March, with an average rainfall of 4.7 inches.

The month with the least rain in Fort Payne is August, with an average rainfall of 2.8 inches.

Snowfall

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

The snowy period of the year lasts for 1.4 months, from January 1 to February 13, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Fort Payne is January, with an average snowfall of 1.3 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 11 months, from February 13 to January 1. The least snow falls around July 26, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Fort Payne varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2023, the shortest day is December 21, with 9 hours, 51 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 14 hours, 28 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:29 AM on June 12, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 36 minutes later at 7:05 AM on November 4. The earliest sunset is at 4:32 PM on December 5, and the latest sunset is 3 hours, 27 minutes later at 7:59 PM on June 29.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Fort Payne during 2023, starting in the spring on March 12, lasting 7.8 months, and ending in the fall on November 5.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2023. 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.

Fort Payne experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 4.0 months, from May 25 to September 25, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 20% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Fort Payne is July, with 23.5 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Fort Payne is February, 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 Fort Payne experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from October 23 to May 13, with average wind speeds of more than 4.4 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Fort Payne is March, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.3 months, from May 13 to October 23. The calmest month of the year in Fort Payne is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 3.4 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 3.1 months, from March 13 to June 15 and for 1.1 months, from November 12 to December 15, with a peak percentage of 39% on May 4. The wind is most often from the west for 1.8 months, from June 15 to August 9, with a peak percentage of 38% on July 14. The wind is most often from the north for 1.3 weeks, from August 9 to August 18; for 1.2 months, from October 5 to November 12; and for 2.9 months, from December 15 to March 13, with a peak percentage of 31% on October 13.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Fort Payne 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 times of year to visit Fort Payne for general outdoor tourist activities are from mid May to early July and from late July to early October, with a peak score in the first 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 Fort Payne for hot-weather activities is from late June to early September, with a peak score in the second 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 Fort Payne typically lasts for 6.5 months (201 days), from around April 10 to around October 28, rarely starting before March 22 or after April 28, and rarely ending before October 9 or after November 17.

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 Fort Payne should appear around February 21, only rarely appearing before February 2 or after March 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 4.7 months, from April 12 to September 3, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Fort Payne is June, with an average of 6.6 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.8 months, from November 13 to February 6, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 3.3 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Fort Payne is December, with an average of 2.5 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Fort Payne are 34.444 deg latitude, -85.720 deg longitude, and 902 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Fort Payne contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 932 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,109 feet. Within 10 miles also contains very significant variations in elevation (1,220 feet). Within 50 miles also contains very significant variations in elevation (1,870 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Fort Payne is covered by trees (53%), artificial surfaces (24%), and cropland (23%), within 10 miles by trees (53%) and cropland (44%), and within 50 miles by trees (61%) and cropland (31%).