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Average July 4th: sunnier and warmer than you might think

This Fourth of July, like almost all Fourths in Seattle, will have sunny skies and warm temps.
Brianna
/
Flickr
This Fourth of July, like almost all Fourths in Seattle, will have sunny skies and warm temps.

The weather for the 4th of July this year is looking pretty good, with scattered clouds in the forecast and highs in the low seventies.  

That’s actually pretty typical, says Carl Carniglia with the national weather service in Seattle.  He looked back at local statistics from the late 1800s to the present and found the historical data contradicts the cliché of rainy weather for Independence day.

"Basically only one out of every four 4th of Julys have rain on them," Cerniglia says. "Three out of four, we have rain and the average temperature is 75 degrees, through that history.”

So overall, he says the fourth tends to be a nice day.  He says in the past ten years, measurable rain has occurred on July 4th only twice.  Last year was the worst of the decade though, with rain and a high of only 65 degrees.

Here's a look back at the numbers for the past ten years of July 4th weather in Seattle:

Year     High  (F)       Precipitation (inches)

201o     65                 0.11

2009     87                 0

2008    71                  0

2007    84                  0

2006    75                  0.02

2005    79                  0

2004     71                 0

2003     75                 0

2002     65                 0

2001     76                 0

Avg      74.8

 

 

Bellamy Pailthorp covers the environment for KNKX with an emphasis on climate justice, human health and food sovereignty. She enjoys reporting about how we will power our future while maintaining healthy cultures and livable cities. Story tips can be sent to bpailthorp@knkx.org.