Climate - El Centro (California)

In El Centro, and in the nearby city of Imperial, the climate is sub-tropical desert, very mild in winter and scorchingly hot in summer.
The city is located in southeastern California, on the border with Mexico. We are in the Imperial Valley, which is one of the hottest areas of North America, and is also a depression, since the altitude drops below sea level. El Centro is located at 12 meters (40 feet) below sea level, but further to the north, on the shores of Lake Salton, it reaches 65 meters (215 ft) below sea level.
In winter it is usually sunny, and the temperature reaches or exceeds 20 °C (68 °F) during the day, while nights are quite cold. Sometimes there can be periods colder than usual, in which the temperature drops to a few degrees below freezing at night, although it exceeds 10 °C (50 °F) during the day it. On the coldest nights of the year, the temperature usually reaches 0 °C (32 °F), but sometimes it can drop below this level. For example, in December 1990, it dropped to -6.7 °C (20 °F), and in January 2011, to -6 °C (21 °F).
Spring is windy.
Typically, the hottest days of the year occur in June or early July. In July and August, there is a slight increase in humidity, which makes the heat even more unpleasant. On the hottest days of the year, the temperature usually reaches 47/49 °C (117/120 °F). In June 2017, it reached 50 °C (122 °F). In July 2006, there was a day with a night minimum of 34 °C (93 °F).
From June to November, but with a higher probability from August to October, the city can be affected by the remnants of hurricanes of the Pacific Ocean, which arrive from tropical latitudes after passing over Baja California. However, hurricanes are rare in June, the month in which they are most frequent is September, and historically, they have never occurred in November.
The average temperature of the coldest month (January) is of 12 °C (54 °F), that of the warmest month (August) is of 33.7 °C (93 °F). Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation amounts to 80 millimeters (3.1 inches) per year: it is therefore at a desert level. It ranges from 0 mm (0 in) in the driest months (April, May, June, July) to 15 mm (0.6 in) in the wettest (January). Here is the average precipitation.

On average, there are around 3,825 sunshine hours per year. Therefore, the sun shines very often. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.

Best Time

The best time to visit El Centro is from November to March. Winter, from December to February, is generally a mild and sunny season, although it can sometimes rain, or it can get a bit cold (especially in December and January). You can therefore choose the months of March and November.

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