Dreariness Index (2015)

[macNchz]

I've wanted to do a similar thing for "sweatiness" for a while, to try quantify the amount of time each year you can do outdoor activities or have the windows open without feeling too hot, based on dew point/humidity + temperature.

I grew up somewhere that didn't require air conditioning, but live in NYC now and find that as an adult the only weather I find truly unpleasant is when it's too hot to do anything outside without immediately being drenched in sweat. I really dislike the feeling of being trapped inside in the A/C, since at least even when it's very cold you can be comfortable in proper clothing.

Even without an actual map, though, I've been enjoying many of the visualizations on https://weatherspark.com/ for comparing cities on these kinds of things.

[bahmboo]

Time frequency is an important aspect. 10 days in a row with no sun is maddening for me vs 20 days where it alternates evenly between sun ball and no sun ball.

As the author states:

  Of course this methodology is completely arbitrary and far from perfect, but it is a start.

[monkeyfacebag]

As someone who has resided both in a foggy part of San Francisco and in Portland, I feel that this index doesn't adequately capture the dreariness of some SF neighborhoods.

[caseyohara]

Agreed. It doesn't seem right that San Francisco (famously foggy) is ranked less dreary than Denver (famously sunny 300 days a year* and quite arid).

*"300 days of sunshine per year" is frequently cited, even on the official Visit Denver website (https://www.denver.org/meetings/denver-info/weather/). Having lived in Denver for the last ~15 years, it is very sunny, but "300 days a year" stretches the truth just a bit.

[madcaptenor]

I think to adequately analyze San Francisco you need finer geographic resolution than this data allows.

[lutusp]

IMHO a better model would take into account both ends of the temperature spectrum. There are days in the southwest so hot that one wouldn't think of going outside -- just as though it were rainy and/or cold.

In fact, because of climate change, on days when the so-called "wet-bulb temperature" gets to 35°C (95°F), people who dare to go outside will simply die. That day may arrive sooner than people think.

Imagine this: Phoenix, AZ, a day with a wet-bulb temperature at or above 35°C. Everyone is cowering inside near their air conditioners. Then the power fails. This might also happen sooner than people expect.

[ninalanyon]

Perhaps someone could do a survey asking people whether they felt the weather was dreary and try to correlate that with cloud cover, precipitation, etc.

For me a good rainstorm is not necessarily dreary and endless sunshine is not necessarily un-dreary.

[davidw]

One quibble might be Hawai'i. Tropical cloudy/wet doesn't feel quite the same as the 5C (~ 41F) rain/cold/dreary you get in, say, Portland Oregon that just chills you to the bone.

[xnx]

That is a crazy color scale. Both ends are basically red?

[roxolotl]

Love that you can see Mt Washington NH on this map. There’s nothing quite like the weather around it.

[rob74]

> In previous posts, I have looked at total rainfall, number of wet days, and cloud cover independently of one another.

Unfortunately those posts aren't linked, so that left me a bit puzzled. A day with rain is also wet (and probably cloudy)? So not sure how you can look at the three independently. Also, what is a "wet day" without rain? Foggy? High air humidity, but no rain?

[stevenwoo]

I’ve been areas where the cloud height matches or is below the altitude and everything outside is wet. This happens in coastal areas with clouds starting at elevation zero, too. One can ascend the mountains to see the cloud tops.

[wenc]

Can confirm map. Seattle is truly dreary.

[SCUSKU]

I grew up in Seattle, and moved to California in large part because of the seasonal depression I would get. I'm much happier in SF.

[qingcharles]

Does dreary weather produce nicer people, though? The places with the dreariest weather seem to correlate with lovely populations?

[bilater]

This tracks. I always say about Seattle its not the rain but the gray that makes it depressing.

[qingcharles]

100% this. Seattle is probably my favorite city in the USA, but the dreary weather kills it for me.

People say it rains all the time in England, but it's not that. It's the grey that makes it depressing.

[rendall]

The map colors are unique. It starts lowest as dark red, proceeds from dark red through orange, yellow, green and on into dark blue, then moves into red again for the highest value! Red is both lowest and highest!

[DidYaWipe]

When I think "dreary," I don't think about weather. I think about ugly-ass environs.

That's why I looked at the map, saw L.A. in a red zone, and thought huh there might be something to this.

[anthomtb]

I am not sure you are interpreting the map correctly. The red-brown tones are less-dreary, while bright red is more-dreary. L.A. is squarely in the less-dreary area. See also the numerical rankings.

Your point stands though. L.A. is one fugly city.

[levocardia]

Low end of scale: dark red. High end of scale: bright red. Who makes these decisions!?!?

[HPsquared]

See also, Misery Index (perceived air temperature as combination of heat index and wind chill). Click map to see values.

https://earth.nullschool.net/#current/wind/surface/level/ove...

[bentt]

People bust on Buffalo for the snow, but the dreariness makes up for it.