Climate of Florida

The climate of the north and central parts of the US state of Florida is humid subtropical. South Florida has a tropical climate. There is a defined rainy season from May through October, when air mass thundershowers that build in the heat of the day drop heavy but brief summer rainfall. Late summer and early fall bring decaying tropical lows (and occasionally landfalling tropical cyclones) that contribute to late summer and early fall rains.

In October the dry season sets in across much of Florida (starting early in the month in northern Florida and near the end of the month in deep southern Florida) and lasts until late April in most years. Fronts from mid-latitude storms north of Florida occasionally pass through northern and central parts of the state which bring light and brief winter rainfall. Mid and late winter can become severely dry in Florida. In some years the dry season becomes quite severe and water restrictions are imposed to conserve water. While most areas of Florida do not experience any type of frozen precipitation, north Florida can see fleeting snow or sleet a few times each decade.

The Gulf Stream running through the Florida Straits and then north off the Florida East Coast keeps temperatures moderate a few miles inland from around Stuart on the east coast to Ft. Myers on the west side of the state year round, with few extremes in temperature. The tropical ocean current also provides warm sea surface temperatures, giving Florida beaches the warmest ocean surf waters on the United States mainland.

The low pressure measured from an extratropical cyclone was 28.84 inches/976.7 hPa during the Storm of the Century (1993). From a tropical cyclone, the lowest pressure measured was 26.35 inches/892 hPa in the Florida Keys during the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935. The highest known pressure measured statewide was 30.74 inches/1041.1 hPa in Tallahassee on February 5, 1996 and January 4, 1979.

Over the winter prevailing winds are out of the north across the panhandle south to near Orlando, but are variable in the rest of the state. The summer season sees generally east and southeast winds across the peninsula. During the summer months, the average wind pattern implies a surface ridge axis which normally lies across central Florida, with easterly winds from Tampa southward and southwest winds across northern Florida. The peak wind gust during the 1930 through 1997 period was 115 mph (100 knots) at Miami International Airport during Hurricane Andrew.

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Wikipedia