South Dakota is comprised of four major land regions--the Drift Prairie, the Dissected Till Plains, the Great Plains, and the Black Hills. Each region produces varying weather systems. Characterized by sunny, warm summers and frigid thick-snow winters, South Dakota is nicknamed both the Sunshine State (like Florida) and the Blizzard State (like Texas).
Average temperature in January is 13.5 degrees F and average temperature in July is 75 degrees. Due to South Dakota's plains and varying landscapes, the climate is predictable. Visitors and South Dakota locals can travel to different regions of the state to experience different weather systems.
In Rapid City, in the west bordering Wyoming, the average temperature is 8.3 degrees C (47 degrees F). The highest monthly average temperature is 31 degrees C (88 degrees F) in July; the lowest monthly average temperature is -12 degrees C (10 degrees F) in January.
South Dakota receives an average of 376 mm (14.8 inches) of rainfall per year, and an average 31 mm, or 1.2 inches, of rain per month.
From mid-June to mid-September, South Dakota weather is warm and sometimes hot with cool nights. Because humidity is low year-round, high and low temperatures range widely every day. Precipitation levels are low in the southeast (at roughly 25 inches annually) and lowest in the northwest (just around 15 inches per year). Frequent summer thunderstorms sometimes cause severe damage while tornadoes, common and dangerous in the eastern half of the state, can also occur in the other nearby areas.
Winters in South Dakota are extremely cold. Typically, the heaviest snows fall at the end of autumn (around November) and also in early spring (March and April).
While temperatures can be cold, cold spells usually mingle and alternate with milder temperatures.
