Rhode Island annual temperatures and extremes

Rhode Island Annual Temperatures and Extremes

City	Avg High Temp	Avg Low Temp	Avg Annual Temp	Avg # days > 90F	Avg # days < 32F	Record High Temp	Record Low Temp
Newport	58.5	43.3	50.9	1	98	98 / 1975	-9 / 1982
Providence	59.9	41.8	50.8	9	115	104 / 1975	-13 / 1976
Rhode Island annual average temperature - 50.07 degrees, 27th warmest state in the U.S. Record Hottest year in Rhode Island - 1912 / Avg temperature 53.36 degrees Record Coldest year in Rhode Island - 1917 / Avg temperature 45.23 degrees Rhode Island average Summer temperature (June, July, August) 88.8 F degrees, 33rd warmest U.S. summer state Rhode Island average Winter temperature (December, January, February) 31.4 F degrees, 24th coldest U.S. winter state

Rhode Island Temperature Records
Hottest temperature ever recorded: 104 F, Providence, east-central Rhode Island, 8/2/1975

Coldest temperature ever recorded: -25 F, Greene, central Rhode Island, 2/5/1996

Hottest location ranked by highest average annual temperature: Newport, southeastern Rhode Island, 50.9 F

Coldest location ranked by lowest average annual temperature: North Foster, northwestern Rhode Island, 43.4 F
The mean annual temperature in Rhode Island ranges from 48 degrees Fahrenheit (° F) except near the south shore, Narragansett Bay, and in the large built-up area around Providence, where it is 51 degrees. Southwestern Rhode Island, from four to 10 miles inland, exhibits a coolness not suggested by the nearness to the ocean or the general elevation of 50 to 150 feet. Here the annual mean temperature is not more than 48° F, making the section as cool as the cooler areas of the northwest interior.

The average daily minimum temperature in January and February is 19 to 20 over about two-thirds of the State, increasing to near 25° F in immediate coastal sections. The number of days with minimum temperature of 0° F or below averages one or less per year in the Bay and coastal areas. The number increases to about five per year in most of the interior. In a particularly cold winter month as many as six to eight days with such temperatures are observed in southwestern Rhode Island, a few miles inland from the coast. A maximum temperature of 32° F or lower occurs on an average of 20 to 25 days per year along the shoreline and 30 to 40 days in the remainder of the State.

The greatest numbers of hot days occur in the metropolitan areas and in parts of the northern interior. Here, about eight to 10 days of temperatures of 90° F or higher may be expected each year with a variation from two to five days in cool summers to 20 or more in exceptionally warm summers. Near the immediate coast, the occurrence of 90° F temperatures is limited to one day in an average summer, if it occurs at all. Temperatures of 100° F or higher have been recorded in the northern interior occasionally.

The length of the freeze-free season, as noted by the occurrence of temperatures of 32° F or lower, averages from 155 to 180 days in most of Rhode Island. Exceptions are in the southwestern interior with an average length of 130 to 145 days and in the immediate Bay area with 200 days or more. Near the southeastern shore of the Bay the first autumn freezing temperature is considerably delayed compared to the rest of the State. From year to year there is some variation in the length the freeze period.

Rhode Island precipitation averages and extremes, U.S. Top 10 climate extremes, precipitation data for all U.S. states
Data source: National Climatic Data Center