Editing Springfield, Massachusetts (section)

===Climate===

{{climate chart
| Springfield, MA
|17.7|34.5|3.23
|20.9|38.5|2.89
|27.9|47.7|3.62
|38.4|60.5|3.72
|47.7|71.2|4.35
|57.3|79.6|4.35
|62.7|84.5|4.18
|61.1|82.7|3.93
|52.7|74.9|3.88
|41.1|63.1|4.37
|33.2|51.6|3.89
|23.4|39.7|3.44
|units = imperial
|float = right
|clear = right }}

Springfield, like other cities in southern New England, has a [[hot-summer humid continental climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Dfa'') with four distinct seasons and precipitation evenly distributed throughout the year, but the intensity (and sometimes the duration) of warmer periods is greater than in northern areas. Winters are cold with a daily average in January of around {{convert|26|°F|C|0}}. During winter, [[nor'easter]] storms can drop significant snowfalls on Springfield and the [[Connecticut River Valley]]. Temperatures below {{convert|0|°F|°C|0}} can occur each year, though the area does not experience the high snowfall amounts and blustery wind averages of nearby cities such as [[Worcester, Massachusetts]], and [[Albany, New York]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}}

Springfield's summers are very warm and sometimes humid. During summer, several times per month, on hot days afternoon [[thunderstorms]] will develop when unstable warm air collides with approaching [[cold front]]s. The daily average in July is around {{convert|74|°F|C|0}}. Usually several days during the summer exceed {{convert|90|°F|°C|0}}, constituting a "[[heat wave]]". Spring and fall temperatures are usually pleasant, with mild days and crisp, cool nights. Precipitation averages {{convert|45.85|in|mm|0}} annually, and snowfall averages {{convert|40.5|in|cm|0}}, most of which falls from mid-December to early March. Although not unheard of, extreme weather events like [[hurricanes]] and [[tornado]]es occur infrequently in Springfield compared with other areas in the country. On the occasions that hurricanes have hit New England, Springfield's inland, upriver location has caused its damages to be considerably less than shoreline cities like [[New Haven, Connecticut]], and [[Providence, Rhode Island]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}}

On [[2011 New England tornado outbreak|June 1, 2011]], Springfield was directly struck by the second-largest [[tornado]] ever to hit [[Massachusetts]].<ref name="noaa1">{{cite web |author=James Notchey |url=http://www.erh.noaa.gov/box/sigevents/jun01_2011_summary.php |title=Massachusetts Tornado Outbreak Summary—National Weather Service Forecast Office in Taunton, MA |publisher=Erh.noaa.gov |access-date=June 28, 2011 |archive-date=July 6, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706042455/http://www.erh.noaa.gov/box/sigevents/jun01_2011_summary.php |url-status=live }}</ref> With wind speeds exceeding {{convert|160|mph|km/h|abbr=on|0}}, the [[2011 New England tornado outbreak#The Greater Springfield tornado|tornado]] left three dead, hundreds injured, and over 500 homeless in the city alone.<ref name="wggb1">{{cite web|url=http://www.wggb.com/story/14943481/helping-homeless-tornado-victims|title=Massachusetts News, Weather, Photos, Events—Western Mass News|website=Wggb.com|access-date=April 27, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002155822/http://www.wggb.com/story/14943481/helping-homeless-tornado-victims|archive-date=October 2, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/weather/four-dead-in-springfield-tornadoes |title=Four dead in Springfield tornadoes &#124; WTNH.com Connecticut |publisher=Wtnh.com |access-date=June 28, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603062933/http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/weather/four-dead-in-springfield-tornadoes |archive-date=June 3, 2011 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> The tornado caused hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage to Springfield and wrought significant destruction in a {{convert|39|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} path from [[Westfield, Massachusetts|Westfield]] to [[Charlton, Massachusetts]].<ref name="noaa1" /> It was the first deadly tornado to strike Massachusetts since May 29, 1995.
{{Hartford–Springfield weatherbox}}