Moving to a new city means adjusting to many changes. Have you thought about the weather in your new home town? If you are relocating to New Orleans or have a PCS to NAS JRB New Orleans, here's what you need to know about our climate.
New Orleans has what is called a subtropical climate. What does this mean? Short, mostly mild winters and hot, hot summers!
January is traditionally the coldest month of year in New Orleans, with average daytime temperatures of around 55 degrees. Nighttime temperatures can sometimes, but not often, fall below freezing. During these cold nights, you'll hear the locals talks about the three P's: pipes, plants and pets. Raised houses with exposed pipes underneath can be at risk of freezing if the pipes are not wrapped, while the much loved tropical plants should be covered and pets should be brought inside for the night. Fortunately, these light to moderate freezes occur on only a few nights through the winter.
February, March and April bring fabulous springtime days, with high temperatures in the low 60s to mid 70s. The mild winters are one of the reasons that New Orleans offers a year round planting season for gardeners! This is also the time of year to have your air conditioning system cleaned and serviced, before the dog days of summer have the repairmen hopping!
Summer begins in earnest in May in New Orleans. "But the first day of summer isn't until June 21st". True, but the average daytime temperatures begin to reach the 80s in early May, continuing through June and July with average temperatures hovering in the 90s through August and into September. The humidity in New Orleans can take some getting used to and can be the cause of many a bad hair day! Humidity of more than 80% is not uncommon during the summer months, so dress for the heat and take advantage of opportunities to be in the air conditioning or cooling off in the water.
Our first nice cool snap usually occurs in mid to late October, with pleasant temperatures in the 60s through Thanksgiving and Christmas. Looking for a white Christmas? If so, you've come to the wrong place, although we did experience a rare snowfall on Christmas Day, 2004. I can count on my fingers the number of times it has snowed in New Orleans in my lifetime, so you can pack the parkas away in the attic!
Other New Orleans climate information:
Average rainfall: Approximately 4 inches per month, with an average high rainfall of 7.6 inches in July and an average low rainfall of 1.7 inches in October.
Hurricane season: June through November. Read more about Hurricane Preparedness from the National Hurricane Center.
Now that you know what to expect in New Orleans weather, let me be the first to welcome you to the Crescent City!
When buying or selling a home on the West Bank of New Orleans or relocating to the New Orleans West Bank, you deserve local expertise and advice. Lisa Heindel provides full time, professional real estate services to buyer, sellers and military transferees in Algiers, Algiers Point, Belle Chasse, Gretna, Terrytown, Harvey, Marrero, Westwego and more.
Copyright 2008. Lisa Heindel, All rights reserved.
;)
;)
