Climate in Texas

The climate in Texas is varied from one area to another; this is to be expected in such a large state. Part of the reason is the huge variety of geography that Texas has. There are coastal regions, mountains, deserts and wide open planes. In addition the state is located where several climate zones meet which also affects the weather. In large part the area that you are located in will determine what the climate will be like.

The coastal regions of Texas have the sort of weather that you would expect to find on any other area around the Gulf of Mexico. In general the weather is mild getting neither particularly hot in the summer nor particularly cold during the winter. There is however a considerable amount of rain in the coastal areas. In addition hurricanes are a not infrequent occurrence in the coastal regions; some of these have been very destructive.

The northern plains region of the panhandle will experience both the coldest and the hottest temperatures in the state. Being furthest away from the water it does not have the regulating effect that occurs in most of the rest of the state. Temperatures frequently fall below freezing during the winter and they can get very hot during the summer. Although there is not a lot of rain in this region thunderstorms are fairly common during the summer. These thunderstorms can produce a great deal of rain in a very short time, they also so times spawn tornados.

West Texas is mostly desert area with little rain and hot temperatures during the summer. It can however get quite cold in the winter. The area also has most of the states mountain areas. In the mountains the climate tends to be more temperate with temperatures being more stable and there being more rain produced. The mountain areas do however tend to be very windy.

Most of central Texas is hill country which has a climate that is similar to the one in the panhandle but not as extreme. The summer tends to be hot and winter quite cool. There are however more rivers and lakes in this area to help regulate the temperature. In addition there are large areas of forest which tends to inhibit the development of thunderstorms so they are not as frequent as in the panhandle, although they do still occur.

As a state Texas has some of the most extreme weather that you will find anywhere in the country. While certain regions have certain climate traits you can get almost any weather anywhere. This was shown in 2004 when a large snow storm fell on the coastal regions. Because of the extremes of weather it is important for the visitor to Texas to be prepared for all kinds of weather since they are likely to happen.