Geography
A January 2011 photo of Tallahassee taken from the International Space Station (ISS)
Tallahassee's terrain is hilly by Florida standards, being located at the southern end of the Red Hills Region, just above the Cody Scarp. The elevation varies from near sea level to just over 200 feet (61 m), with the state capitol on one of the highest hills in the city. The city includes two large lake basins, Lake Jackson and Lake Lafayette, and borders the northern end of the Apalachicola National Forest.
The flora and fauna are similar to those found in the mid-south and low country regions of South Carolina and Georgia. The palm trees are the more cold-hardy varieties like the state tree, the Sabal palmetto. Pines, magnolias, hickories, and a variety of oaks are the dominant trees. The Southern Live Oak is perhaps the most emblematic of the city.
Climate
Unlike most of Florida, Tallahassee experiences all four seasons. Shown
are the autumn leaves along the sidewalks of Monroe Street in Downtown
Tallahassee.
Summer is characterized by brief intense showers and thunderstorms that form along the afternoon sea breeze from the Gulf of Mexico. The daily mean temperature in July, the hottest month, is 82.0 °F (27.8 °C). Conversely, the city is markedly cooler in the winter, with a January daily average temperature of 51.2 °F (10.7 °C). In addition, as Tallahassee straddles the boundary between USDA Hardiness Zones 8B and 9A,[21] the coldest temperature of the season is typically around 20 °F or −6.7 °C. During the Great Blizzard of 1899 the city reached −2 °F (−18.9 °C), the only recorded sub-zero Fahrenheit reading in Florida and actually colder than the record low in Ketchikan, Alaska and Tromso, Norway.
Snow and ice are rare in Tallahassee. Nonetheless, over the last 100 years, the city has recorded some accumulating snowfalls; the heaviest was 2.8 inches (0.07 m) on February 13, 1958. A White Christmas occurred in 1989,[22] and during the March 13–14, 1993 eastern U.S. “superstorm”, there were high winds and traces of snow. Historically, the city usually records at least flurries every three to four years, but on average, measurable amounts of snow 1.0 inch (2.5 cm) occur only once every 17 years. The last measurable snowfall took place December 22–23, 1989. The natural snow line (regular yearly snowfalls) ends 200 miles (320 km) to the north at Macon, Georgia, but the city averages 32 nights where the temperature falls below freezing, and, on average, the first freeze occurs on November 20, the last on March 22.[19]
Although several hurricanes have brushed Tallahassee with their outer rain and wind bands, in recent years only Hurricane Kate, in 1985, has struck Tallahassee directly. The Big Bend area of North Florida sees several tornadoes each year during the season, but they are generally weak, cause little structural damage, and rarely hit the city directly. The most recent tornado to hit Tallahassee occurred on April 19, 2015. The tornado was classified as an EF1, and created a path as wide as 350 yards for almost 5 miles near Maclay Gardens.[23] Damage included numerous downed tree limbs and a car crushed by a falling tree. During extremely heavy rains, some low-lying parts of Tallahassee may flood, notably the Franklin Boulevard area adjacent to the downtown and the Killearn Lakes subdivision (which is not within the city limits proper) on the north side.
| [hide]Climate data for Tallahassee, Florida (Tallahassee Regional Airport), 1981–2010 normals, extremes 1892–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 83 (28) |
89 (32) |
91 (33) |
95 (35) |
102 (39) |
105 (41) |
104 (40) |
103 (39) |
102 (39) |
95 (35) |
89 (32) |
84 (29) |
105 (41) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 63.5 (17.5) |
67.5 (19.7) |
73.8 (23.2) |
79.9 (26.6) |
87.0 (30.6) |
91.0 (32.8) |
92.1 (33.4) |
91.5 (33.1) |
88.4 (31.3) |
81.4 (27.4) |
73.0 (22.8) |
65.3 (18.5) |
79.6 (26.4) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 51.2 (10.7) |
54.7 (12.6) |
60.4 (15.8) |
66.1 (18.9) |
74.3 (23.5) |
80.2 (26.8) |
82.0 (27.8) |
81.8 (27.7) |
78.2 (25.7) |
69.4 (20.8) |
60.2 (15.7) |
53.2 (11.8) |
67.6 (19.8) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 39.0 (3.9) |
41.9 (5.5) |
47.1 (8.4) |
52.3 (11.3) |
61.6 (16.4) |
69.5 (20.8) |
72.0 (22.2) |
72.1 (22.3) |
68.1 (20.1) |
57.3 (14.1) |
47.5 (8.6) |
41.1 (5.1) |
55.8 (13.2) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 6 (−14) |
−2 (−19) |
20 (−7) |
29 (−2) |
34 (1) |
46 (8) |
57 (14) |
57 (14) |
40 (4) |
29 (−2) |
13 (−11) |
10 (−12) |
−2 (−19) |
| Average rainfall inches (mm) | 4.34 (110.2) |
4.84 (122.9) |
5.92 (150.4) |
3.06 (77.7) |
3.47 (88.1) |
7.73 (196.3) |
7.28 (184.9) |
7.34 (186.4) |
4.68 (118.9) |
3.23 (82) |
3.49 (88.6) |
3.90 (99.1) |
59.28 (1,505.5) |
| Average rainy days (≥ 0.01 inch) | 8.9 | 8.4 | 7.9 | 6.1 | 7.1 | 13.6 | 15.9 | 14.4 | 8.5 | 5.7 | 6.6 | 8.1 | 111.2 |
| Source: NOAA[19][24] | |||||||||||||
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