At a Glance
- Several key changes in the weather typically take place in October.
- Many areas experience their first freeze and/or snowfalls of the season.
- Hurricane danger peaks in Florida in October.
- Santa Ana winds and powerful storms return in October.
October is full of weather changes as we transition from summer to winter.
During the fall, the amount of sunlight declines and temperatures get colder, which leads to the first freeze and snowfall of the season, as well as beautiful foliage. However, hurricanes, wildfires and powerful storms are also concerns in October.
First Freeze of the Season
Temperatures begin to dip toward the freezing mark farther south as October progresses.
The first 32-degree low temperatures are usually experienced before the month begins in parts of the higher elevations of the West and near the Canadian border.
In October, the first freeze of the season occurs across much of the interior Northeast, Midwest and the Northern and Central Plains.
Areas as far south as the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina, the Texas Panhandle and northern New Mexico and Arizona experience their average first freeze by the end of the month.
(MORE: Here's the Earliest You Could See Freezing Temperatures)
Fall Foliage Peaks
October is when the large majority of the Northeast, Midwest and West sees the best, most vivid fall colors. However, areas closer to the mid-Atlantic coast and farther south often wait until early November to experience peak fall foliage.
The picturesque color is due to crisp, cool nights and fewer daylight hours.
(MAPS: Current Fall Foliage Status)
First Snowfall of the Season
Increasingly cold air leads to the chance for snow in parts of the Lower 48.
Accumulating snow is usually restricted to the highest peaks of the Rockies and Alaska in September.
In October, the first snowfall of the season is typically observed in much of the Rockies, as well as parts of the Western and Northern Plains. The northern Great Lakes also usually see their first snow of the season in October.
Parts of the higher elevations of the Appalachians, Adirondacks and the Green and White Mountains often see snowflakes this time of year.
The average first measurable snow (at least 0.1 inches) falls in October in several cities, including Caribou, Maine; Marquette, Michigan; Duluth, Minnesota; Bismarck, North Dakota; Great Falls, Montana; Denver; and Anchorage, Alaska.
Last year, an early-season winter storm brought snow to portions of the Plains, Midwest and Rockies on Halloween.
Tropical Threats
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Hurricanes and tropical storms remain serious concerns through October.
From 1851 through 2019, 33 hurricanes made a landfall in Florida in October, dwarfing the state with the second-highest number: Louisiana with 10.
In South Florida, October is the month with the most hurricane direct hits. According to NOAA's Best Track Database, 24 October hurricanes have passed within 100 nautical miles of downtown Miami since 1851.
Most recently, Hurricane Michael made its catastrophic Category 5 landfall on the Florida Panhandle on Oct. 10, 2018.
Santa Ana Winds, Wildfire Concern
Southern California's infamous offshore winds, known as Santa Ana winds, typically kick into gear by October, according to a 2017 climatology study.
Fueled by a combination of high pressure in the Great Basin and the southward return of the jet stream, these hot, intense winds squeeze through passes and canyons of the L.A. Basin at times, most commonly from September through March.
What makes them particularly dangerous in October is that soil moisture is at its driest after the summer dry season. These Santa Ana winds can whip either an existing wildfire or just-developed small brush fire into an inferno.
Currently, the fight against the Bobcat Fire, one of the largest on record in Los Angeles County, has been hindered at times due to Santa Ana winds.
Powerful Storms, Severe Weather
Big October storms are also not unusual.
Superstorm Sandy in 2012 was the ultimate recent example of a massive October storm. One of Sandy's unique impacts was its feet of snow burying parts of the Appalachians.
More recently in 2019, a bomb cyclone lashed the Northeast with strong winds and heavy rainfall.
Other big October storms:
-Winter Storm Atlas hammered the High Plains with blizzard conditions in early October 2013.
-The "Snowtober" storm knocked out power to over 3 million in the Northeast in late October 2011.
-The "Octobomb" storm set all-time low-pressure records in Minnesota and Wisconsin and spawned severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in the Ohio Valley and mid-South.
-Heavy lake effect snow damaged trees and knocked out power to 1 million customers in Buffalo, New York, in mid-October 2006.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
