Why is upstate new york so cloudy

One comparison to Syracuse would be Sioux Falls, S. Sioux Falls and Syracuse get a similar amount of sunshine in the summer, but, thanks to lake effect clouds, Sioux Falls gets nearly twice as much sunshine as Syracuse does in the winter months. Source: National Centers for Environmental Information. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. All rights reserved About Us. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local.

Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Ad Choices. By Glenn Coin gcoin syracuse. Syracuse is one of the cloudiest places in the United States, and December is its cloudiest month. Stephen D. Cannerelli scannerelli syracuse.

Syracuse, N. Five Upstate New York cities are in the Top 25 cloudiest locations in the United States, according to federal climate data of official weather observation stations. The data is based on possible sunshine; that is, how many daylight hours that sunshine isn't blocked by clouds. The cloudiest month of the year in Upstate is December: For much of the region, the sun pokes through the clouds about a quarter of the time between sunrise and sunset.

Syracuse is Upstate's cloudiest city, ranking eighth from the bottom in the US in terms of possible sunshine. Syracuse gets 44 percent of available sunshine throughout the year. When it comes to Buffalo weather, the city is known for its snowfall , and for good reason. While the Pacific Northwest gets a lot of recognition for being cloudy, Buffalo actually has more cloudy days per year than any other large city in the U. According to the National Weather Service, cold fronts from Canada become more common in late October, and as the cold air passes over the warmer Great Lakes, cloud cover in Buffalo and WNY increases drastically.

Lake effect snow in Buffalo and Western New York occurs when cold air crosses the relatively warm waters of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario and becomes saturated, creating clouds and precipitation downwind. These snowbands are often highly localized, since their location is determined by the direction of the wind. According to Wikipedia, cold winds in the winter typically prevail from the northwest in this region, which is why areas south of Buffalo also receive much more lake effect snow than locations to the north.

Prevailing winds from the northwest also result in more lake effect snow and increased cloudiness on the southern and eastern shores of the Great Lakes compared to the northern and western shores. This explains why cities such as Detroit, Toledo, Milwaukee and Chicago, on the west side of the Great Lakes, receive less snow and are less cloudy than Buffalo, which borders the east shore of Lake Erie, according to the Washington Post.