Climate
Average summer daytime temperatures range from 90 °F (32 °C) to over 100 °F (38 °C). Because the clear skies of the park allow for rapid cooling at night, summer lows are sometimes 40 °F (22 °C) below the daily highs. July is the warmest month, with an average high of 92 °F (33 °C) and an average low of 60 °F (16 °C). January is the coldest month, when highs average 48 °F (9 °C) and lows average 21 °F (−6 °C). The highest recorded temperature was 107 °F (42 °C) in 1998, and the lowest was −27 °F (−33 °C) in 1971.
Winter winds can reach 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). Summer breezes are lighter, but the 10-mile-per-hour (16 km/h) average wind causes frequent sandstorms and dust devils, some of which reach altitudes of several thousand feet.
Rain is heaviest from July through September, when about half of the park's annual average precipitation falls during short, violent thunderstorms. August is generally the wettest month. At an elevation of more than 5,000 feet (1,500 m), Petrified Forest National Park has a chance of light snow from October through March, although snow cover rarely persists. The average relative humidity of the area is well below 50 percent and at times less than 15 percent.
| Climate data for Petrified Forest National Park | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °F (°C) | 48 (9) |
55 (13) |
62 (17) |
70 (21) |
79 (26) |
90 (32) |
92 (33) |
90 (32) |
84 (29) |
72 (22) |
59 (15) |
49 (9) |
70.8 (21.6) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 21 (−6) |
25 (−4) |
29 (−2) |
35 (2) |
43 (6) |
52 (11) |
60 (16) |
59 (15) |
52 (11) |
40 (4) |
28 (−2) |
21 (−6) |
38.8 (3.8) |
| Precipitation inches (mm) | 0.65 (16.5) |
0.69 (17.5) |
0.80 (20.3) |
0.40 (10.2) |
0.53 (13.5) |
0.30 (7.6) |
1.45 (36.8) |
1.62 (41.1) |
1.33 (33.8) |
1.20 (30.5) |
0.79 (20.1) |
0.78 (19.8) |
10.54 (267.7) |
| Source: The Weather Channel | |||||||||||||
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