Climate of Pennsylvania - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The climate of Pennsylvania is diverse due to the multitude of geographic features found within the state. Pennsylvania rarely is overcast . Straddling two major climate zone

Köppen climate classification

The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...

s, the southeastern corner of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

has the warmest climate. Greater Philadelphia lies at the southernmost tip of the Humid continental climate zone, with some characteristics of the Humid subtropical climate that lies in Delaware

Delaware

Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...

and Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

to the south. Moving west toward the mountainous interior of the state, the climate becomes markedly colder, the number of cloudy days increases, and winter snow

Snow

Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...

fall amounts are greater.

Temperature

City	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Monthly Normal High and Low Temperatures For Various Pennsylvania Cities
Scranton	34/18	37/20	47/28	59/38	71/48	78/57	83/61	81/60	72/53	61/42	49/34	39/24
Erie	33/20	36/21	45/28	56/38	67/49	76/59	80/64	79/63	72/56	61/46	49/36	39/27
Pittsburgh	37/20	39/21	50/29	62/38	71/48	80/56	85/62	83/60	76/53	64/41	53/33	42/25
Harrisburg	31/23	41/25	51/33	63/42	80/51	90/70	90/72	85/64	76/57	64/45	53/36	34/28
Philadelphia	39/25	42/28	51/35	62/44	72/55	81/64	86/70	84/69	77/61	66/49	55/40	44/31
'

Most interior lowland areas have a moderate humid continental climate

Humid continental climate

A humid continental climate is a climatic region typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot summers and cold winters....

(Koppen climate classification

Köppen climate classification

Dfa), with hot, humid summers and cool to cold winters. Highland areas in the Appalachians have a more severe humid continental climate (Koppen Dfb), with colder, snowy winters and somewhat cooler summers. The southeastern area has a humid subtropical climate

Humid subtropical climate

A humid subtropical climate is a climate zone characterized by hot, humid summers and mild to cool winters...

(Koppen Cfa) with somewhat milder winters.

Precipitation

Western areas of the state, particularly cities near Lake Erie

Lake Erie

Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...

, can receive over 100 inches (254 cm) of snowfall annually, and the entire state receives an average of 41 inches (1,041 mm) of rainfall every year. Floods are more common in March and April than other months of the year.

Tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclones threaten the state during the summer and fall, with their main impact being rainfall. Although Hurricane Agnes

Hurricane Agnes

Hurricane Agnes was the first tropical storm and first hurricane of the 1972 Atlantic hurricane season. A rare June hurricane, it made landfall on the Florida Panhandle before moving northeastward and ravaging the Mid-Atlantic region as a tropical storm...

was barely a hurricane at landfall in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

, its major impact was over the Mid-Atlantic region, where Agnes combined with a non-tropical low to produce widespread rains of 6 inches (152.4 mm) to 12 inches (304.8 mm) with local amounts up to 19 inches (482.6 mm) in western Schuylkill County

Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania

-Notable people:*Boxing heavyweight great Muhammad Ali had his training camp in Deer Lake.*Charles Justin Bailey, commanding general of the 81st Division in World War I, was born in Tamaqua on June 21, 1859....

in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

. These rains produced widespread severe flooding from Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

northward to New York, with other flooding occurring over the western portions of the Carolinas.

Philadelphia

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

has received sustained winds approaching hurricane-force from tropical cyclones in the past.

Climate change in Pennsylvania

Former Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell approved a bill that established a $500 million fund to support renewable energy

Renewable energy

Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...

projects. Special Session House Bill 1 authorizes the Commonwealth Financing Authority to borrow $500 million, most of which will be split into six funding sources relating to energy efficiency and renewable energy: $80 million in grant

Grant (money)

Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...

s and loan

Loan

A loan is a type of debt. Like all debt instruments, a loan entails the redistribution of financial assets over time, between the lender and the borrower....

s for solar energy projects; $100 million in grants, loans, and rebates for up to 35% and small businesses; $165 million in grants and loans for alternative energy projects, excluding solar energy, at businesses and local government facilities; $25 million for wind energy

Wind power in Pennsylvania

There are several wind power projects operating in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania and several future wind farms planned or under construction. The most productive wind energy regions generally fall in mountain or coastal terrains...

and geothermal energy projects; $40 million to help start-up businesses involved in energy efficiency technologies; and $25 million in grants and loans to improve the energy efficiency of new and existing homes and small business buildings. An additional $65 million will go toward pollution control technologies and to help low-income families pay their energy bills.

In addition to the $500 million fund, the bill creates a Consumer Energy Program that is funded at $15 million for the next 3 fiscal years, then gradually decreases to $8 million by the 2015-2016 fiscal year, for a total of $100 million. Of that, $92.5 million will support loans, grants, and rebates for up to 25% of the cost of energy efficiency improvements to homes and small businesses, while $5 million will support low-interest loans for energy efficiency improvements to homes. An additional $50 million will be available over the next 8 years to support tax credits for 15% of the cost of alternative energy projects, capped at $1 million per year for each project.

Governor Rendell also approved two bills on July 10 that relate to biofuel

Biofuel

Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...

s. House Bill 1202 could add as much as 1 billion USgals (3,785,412 m³) of advanced biofuels to the state's fuel supply. It requires all retail diesel fuel sold in the state to contain 2% biodiesel, once the in-state production of biodiesel reaches 40 million USgals (151,416.5 m³) per year, increasing incrementally to a 20% biodiesel requirement, once the in-state production of biodiesel reaches 400 million USgals (1,514,164.8 m³) per year (but only if vehicle manufacturers approve the use of 20% biodiesel). Likewise, all retail gasoline sold in the state must contain 10% ethanol, once the in-state production of cellulosic ethanol reaches 350 million USgals (1,324,894.2 m³) per year. The state already has a biodiesel production capacity of 60 million USgals (227,124.7 m³) per year, so the 2% biodiesel requirement could go into effect soon, if production is high enough. To encourage biodiesel production, Special Session Senate Bill 22 will offer a subsidy of 75 cents per 1 gallons (3.8 l) of biodiesel produced, capped at $1.9 million per year for each producer. The bill also expands a hybrid vehicle rebate program to include plug-in hybrids and other alternative fuel vehicles.§.

Temperature

Precipitation

Tropical cyclones

Climate change in Pennsylvania

See also