March transition weather can be extreme
As March begins, Arizona residents welcome the transition from winter to spring.
Folks who experience a “real’ winter season may resent that we claim winter — the lowest temperature recorded for Phoenix since January 2023 was 35 degrees (in January of both 2023 and 2024) — but it’s our winter season and we’ll continue to claim it (plus, visitors seem to love it).
For the record, it can get cold here. The lowest temperature ever recorded in Phoenix was a shocking 16 degrees in January 1913. The lowest reading March has ever seen, though, was 25 degrees back in 1966. And although the desert is known for extreme heat, 100 degrees in March is, well, extreme, even for Arizona.
In fact, the only time it has been recorded was in 1988, and that stands still as the earliest 100-degree reading in Phoenix. We came close to tying that record in 2007 by hitting 99 degrees, but that’s it.
March provides the sort of weather ideal for spring training, hiking, and other outdoor activities before the heat scorches the Valley. In recent years, Phoenix residents have enjoyed average temperatures in the mid-60s throughout the month of March, although the normal for the month ranges from the low 70s to the low 80s. The average high for the first day of spring is 80 degrees.
In terms of rain, March, with an average of 0.83 of an inch of rain, sits in fourth place for most precipitation, behind August (0.93 of an inch), July (0.91 of an inch), and January and February, both 0.87 of an inch.
Rain was the main weather story for February after a series of storms left behind 1.32 inches, notably beyond average. Some rain gauges in the far northeast Valley measured over 2 inches.
While Valley residents got more rain than usual, February temperatures were closer to normal, with an average high of 72 degrees, an average low of 50.5 degrees and a 24-hour average of 61.3 degrees. All three were about 1 degree above normal.
Gabriel Lojero, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Phoenix, says it is still much too early to tell where this March will rank with heat and precipitation, but the forecast is suggesting below-average temperatures and above-average rain amounts.
“It just depends on what the overall weather pattern turns out to be, and if we get a strong area of high pressure,” Lojero said. “There’s not a clear-cut signal in terms of temperature anomalies as we head into the spring months. The chances are very small that we will see 100 degrees in March, but you can’t rule it out. However, it’s much more likely that we see our first 90-degree day instead.”
In true Arizona fashion, the start of
March is embraced with near 80-degree weather, before cooling back down to the low- to mid-70s.
If you live in Phoenix, or are visiting and want to take in the enjoyable weather, you can catch some spring training games, or explore some of the many spring events Arizona has to offer, like the Persian New Year Festival, M3F Music Festival, and the Arizona Aloha Festival to name just a few.
March weather trivia
The 100-degree reading on March 26, 1988, still stands as the earliest 100-degree day on record at Sky Harbor International Airport . ... There have been two 99-degree days, back-to-back March 16 and 17 in 2007 . ... On average the first 90degree day in Phoenix is March 30.