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North
Carolina is a state located in the Southeastern United States along its
Atlantic Seaboard. It was one of the original Thirteen Colonies, and the home
of the first English colony in the Americas. It was also the location of the
first successful powered heavier-than-air flight by the Wright brothers at
Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk in 1903. Today, it is a fast-growing state
with an increasingly diverse economy and population.
Due
to its wide range of elevation, from sea level on the coast to over 6,000
feet in the mountains, North Carolina has the most variation in climate of
all the southeastern states. The climate in the coastal and Piedmont regions
of eastern and central North Carolina is similar to other southern states
such as Georgia and South Carolina, while the climate in the western mountains
is closer to that found in New England or the upper Midwest. While the coastal
plains, especially the tidewater areas, are strongly influenced by the Atlantic
Ocean, the western, mountainous part of the state is more than 300 miles from
the coast, resulting in considerably less maritime influence there. As such,
the climate of the state ranges from a warm, humid subtropical climate near
the coast to a humid continental climate in the mountains. Most of the state
falls in the humid subtropical zone.
North
Carolina consists of three main geographic sections: the coastal plain, which
occupies the eastern 45% of the state; the Piedmont region, which contains
the middle 35%; and the Appalachian Mountains and foothills, which take up
the remaining 20% of the state in the west. The coastal plain begins in the
east as a chain of narrow, sandy barrier islands known as the Outer Banks.
The Outer Banks form two sounds — Albemarle Sound in the north and Pamlico
Sound in the south; they are the two largest landlocked sounds in the United
States. Immediately inland, the coastal plain is relatively flat, with rich
soils ideal for growing tobacco, soybeans, and cotton. The major rivers of
this section, the Neuse River, Tar River, Pamlico River, Cape Fear River,
and Roanoke River, tend to be slow-moving and wide.
The western section of the state is part of the Appalachian Mountain range. Among the subranges of the Appalachians located in the state are the Great Smoky Mountains, Blue Ridge Mountains, Balsams, Pisgahs, and the Black Mountains. The Black Mountains are the highest mountains in the Eastern United States, and culminate in Mount Mitchell at 6,684 feet (2,037 m). It is the highest point east of the Mississippi River. Due to the higher altitude in the mountains, the climate often differs starkly from the rest of the state. Winters in western North Carolina typically feature significant snowfall and subfreezing temperatures more akin to a northern state than a southern one.
The three geographical divisions of North Carolina are useful when discussing the climate of the state.The coastal plain is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, which keeps temperatures mild in the winter and moderate in the summer. Daytime high temperatures on the coast average less than 90°F during the summer. In the winter, the coast has the mildest temperatures in the state, with daytime temperatures rarely dropping below 40°F. The coastal plain usually receives only one inch of snow and/or ice annually, and in some years there may be no snow or ice at all. The Atlantic Ocean has less influence on the Piedmont region, and as a result the Piedmont has hotter summers and colder winters than the coast. Daytime highs in the Piedmont usually average over 90°F in the summer. While it is not common for temperatures to reach over 100°F in North Carolina, when it happens, the highest temperatures are to be found in the lower areas of the Piedmont, especially around the city of Fayetteville.
In the winter, the Piedmont is much less mild than the coast, with daytime temperatures that can reach 30°F or below, and the region averages 8 to 10 inches of snowfall annually. The Piedmont is especially notorious for sleet and freezing rain, which can accumulate to several inches in some storms and snarl traffic and collapse power lines. Annual precipitation and humidity is lower in the Piedmont than either the mountains or the coast, but even at its lowest, the precipitation is a generous 40 inches a year. The Appalachian Mountains are the coolest area of the state, with daytime temperatures frequently falling into the teens (°F) or lower in the winter, and relatively cool summers rarely rising above 80°F. Snowfall in the mountains is usually 14–20 inches per year, but can be much higher in the higher elevations.
Severe weather is not a rare event in North Carolina. On average, the state receives a direct hit from a hurricane once a decade, although in some years several hurricanes or tropical storms can either directly hit the state, or brush across the coastal areas. Only Florida and Louisiana are hit by hurricanes more often. On average, North Carolina has 50 days of thunderstorm activity per year, with some storms becoming severe enough to produce hail and strong, damaging winds. North Carolina averages less than 20 tornadoes per year, and many of these are produced by hurricanes or tropical storms along the coast. Nonetheless, tornadoes from thunderstorms are a risk, especially in the Piedmont region of central North Carolina.
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