Thursday, Friday, and Saturday will likely produce the first freeze events of the season across most of the lower elevations of North Carolina. Higher elevations have already experienced a freeze.
How does the timing of the first freeze in 2013 compare with historical climatology?
Below is a table with dates of average, earliest, and latest freeze for a few lower-elevation sites across the state. (Note that we’re defining a freeze as minimum temperature ≤ 32°F). This table was produced using statistics from our Climate Thresholds tool.
| Location | Average First Freeze Date | Earliest Date | Latest Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greensboro | November 1 | October 4, 1974 | December 1, 1964 |
| Charlotte | November 7 | October 9, 2000 | December 10, 1989 |
| Fayetteville | November 7 | September 20, 1971 | December 3, 1956 |
| Elizabeth City | November 12 | October 21, 1940 | December 11, 1919 |
| Raleigh | November 13 | October 3, 1974 | December 27, 1992 |
So the timing of this year’s freeze is a bit early, but not unusually so. Most of North Carolina experiences their first freeze in the first couple weeks of November. This year, it comes about a week early.