Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Au Sable United States

In Au Sable, the summers are warm and partly cloudy and the winters are freezing, snowy, windy, and mostly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 15°F to 79°F and is rarely below -1°F or above 89°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Au Sable for warm-weather activities is from late June to early September.

The warm season lasts for 3.5 months, from May 31 to September 16, with an average daily high temperature above 69°F. The hottest month of the year in Au Sable is July, with an average high of 79°F and low of 60°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.4 months, from December 1 to March 14, with an average daily high temperature below 39°F. The coldest month of the year in Au Sable is January, with an average low of 16°F and high of 29°F.

In Au Sable, 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 Au Sable begins around May 16 and lasts for 5.7 months, ending around November 7.

The clearest month of the year in Au Sable 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 November 7 and lasts for 6.3 months, ending around May 16.

The cloudiest month of the year in Au Sable is January, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 71% 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 Au Sable varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 7.4 months, from April 2 to November 14, with a greater than 23% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Au Sable is July, with an average of 9.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 4.6 months, from November 14 to April 2. The month with the fewest wet days in Au Sable is February, with an average of 4.7 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 Au Sable changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 10 months, from February 22 to January 6. The month with the most days of rain alone in Au Sable is July, with an average of 9.5 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 1.5 months, from January 6 to February 22. The month with the most days of snow alone in Au Sable is January, with an average of 2.6 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. Au Sable experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Au Sable. The month with the most rain in Au Sable is September, with an average rainfall of 2.8 inches.

The month with the least rain in Au Sable is January, with an average rainfall of 0.6 inches.

Snowfall

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

The snowy period of the year lasts for 5.0 months, from November 13 to April 14, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Au Sable is February, with an average snowfall of 4.9 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 7.0 months, from April 14 to November 13. The least snow falls around July 25, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Au Sable varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 8 hours, 50 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 15 hours, 32 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:48 AM on June 15, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 24 minutes later at 8:12 AM on November 2. The earliest sunset is at 4:53 PM on December 9, and the latest sunset is 4 hours, 28 minutes later at 9:21 PM on June 25.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Au Sable 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.

Au Sable experiences some seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.3 months, from June 9 to September 19, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 6% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Au Sable is July, with 6.4 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is February 28, 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 Au Sable experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.6 months, from September 29 to April 18, with average wind speeds of more than 11.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Au Sable is January, with an average hourly wind speed of 14.2 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.4 months, from April 18 to September 29. The calmest month of the year in Au Sable is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.1 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the north for 3.5 months, from February 29 to June 13, with a peak percentage of 35% on March 7. The wind is most often from the south for 1.1 weeks, from June 13 to June 21 and for 1.8 months, from August 7 to October 2, with a peak percentage of 34% on September 5. The wind is most often from the west for 1.5 months, from June 21 to August 7 and for 4.9 months, from October 2 to February 28, with a peak percentage of 33% on July 18.

Au Sable 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 2.6 months, from July 5 to September 25, with an average temperature above 62°F. The month of the year in Au Sable with the warmest water is August, with an average temperature of 68°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 4.8 months, from December 14 to May 9, with an average temperature below 41°F. The month of the year in Au Sable with the coolest water is February, with an average temperature of 34°F.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Au Sable 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 Au Sable for general outdoor tourist activities is from late 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 Au Sable for hot-weather activities is from early July to mid 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 Au Sable typically lasts for 5.2 months (159 days), from around May 6 to around October 12, rarely starting before April 18 or after May 26, and rarely ending before September 26 or after October 28.

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 Au Sable should appear around May 6, only rarely appearing before April 23 or after May 18.

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 5 to August 19, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Au Sable is June, with an average of 6.8 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.6 months, from October 30 to February 15, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.4 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Au Sable is December, with an average of 1.2 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Au Sable are 44.411 deg latitude, -83.332 deg longitude, and 600 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Au Sable is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 59 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 596 feet. Within 10 miles is essentially flat (253 feet). Within 50 miles contains only modest variations in elevation (988 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Au Sable is covered by water (45%), artificial surfaces (32%), and trees (18%), within 10 miles by water (55%) and trees (18%), and within 50 miles by water (53%) and trees (24%).