placestats

Cloud cover

The share of the sky covered by cloud, in percent, averaged over the whole year, night as well as day. NASA estimates it from weather satellites for squares of land about 60 miles across, so nearby counties often share a value. It starts in 2001, since the older satellites measure cloud differently. Cloud cover, clear days and sunlight come from the same satellite data, so they are not separate evidence about each other.

Reported for3,144areas, in 51 states — none in PR
Link to density0.23not mostly about how urban a place is
Nearby places alike0.94Moran’s I: strongly, neighbouring places tend to be similar
Typerate%

How it has moved

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Every state, every year

One row per state and one column per year, sorted by the latest value. It shows states, not counties: nobody can scan 3,222 rows, and the pattern only shows when it all fits on one screen.

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Where it comes from

NASA POWER (Prediction Of Worldwide Energy Resources) · NASA POWER daily regional API, community RE, CLOUD_AMT

The share of the sky covered by cloud, averaged over the year, from satellites. Combined areas are weighted by their people.

Combining areas: an average weighted by SUN.POPULATION.

What it goes with

The strongest links that have a page of their own. Unadjusted is the link before adjusting for anything, from −1 (opposite) to +1 (in step). Adjusted compares places with the same population density, income and education levels, so those differences can’t explain the link. This list leaves out the 3 pairs built from the same numbers or the same model as this measure, since they are bound to match.

MeasureUnadjustedAdjusted
Cloud cover and Summer daily highWhere Cloud cover is higher, Summer daily high tends to be lower: a strong link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Summer daily high by US county-0.74-0.77
Cloud cover and Days of 90°F or hotterWhere Cloud cover is higher, Days of 90°F or hotter tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Days of 90°F or hotter by US county-0.68-0.69
Cloud cover and Average temperatureWhere Cloud cover is higher, Average temperature tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Average temperature by US county-0.54-0.65
Cloud cover and Heating degree daysWhere Cloud cover is higher, Heating degree days tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Heating degree days by US county+0.47+0.64
Cloud cover and Cooling degree daysWhere Cloud cover is higher, Cooling degree days tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Cooling degree days by US county-0.57-0.63
Cloud cover and Freezing daysWhere Cloud cover is higher, Freezing days tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Freezing days by US county+0.37+0.55
Cloud cover and Share Hispanic or Latino, any raceWhere Cloud cover is higher, Share Hispanic or Latino, any race tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share Hispanic or Latino, any race by US county-0.50-0.51
Cloud cover and Wet daysWhere Cloud cover is higher, Wet days tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Wet days by US county+0.52+0.51
Cloud cover and Adults under 65 without health insuranceWhere Cloud cover is higher, Adults under 65 without health insurance tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Adults under 65 without health insurance by US county-0.51-0.50
Cloud cover and Longest dry spellWhere Cloud cover is higher, Longest dry spell tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Longest dry spell by US county-0.48-0.48

26 more pairs with cloud cover have a page: Colorectal cancer screening · Winter nightly low · Share White, not Hispanic · Cancer other than skin cancer · Current asthma · Natural amenities scale · People per tax return · Vision disability · Share foreign-born · Community resilience to disasters · Environment score · Returns claiming charitable contributions · Fair or poor self-rated health · Returns claiming the earned income credit · Area in drought · Mobility disability · Medicare spending per enrollee · Weeks with half the area in drought · Housing insecurity · Burglary rate · Arthritis · Food insecurity · Any disability · Depression · Diagnosed diabetes · Self-care disability.

Population makeup

How this measure varies with the racial and ethnic makeup of counties. Every group is shown, whatever its rank. These are links across counties: they describe places, not people. They say nothing about any person’s risk or behaviour based on their race. Counties with a larger share of one group also differ in much else, such as income, segregation, region and history. The adjusted figure only accounts for density, income and education.

Share of residentsUnadjustedAdjusted
Cloud cover and Share White, not HispanicWhere Cloud cover is higher, Share White, not Hispanic tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share White, not Hispanic by US county+0.42+0.45
Cloud cover and Share Black, not HispanicWhere Cloud cover is higher, Share Black, not Hispanic tends to be lower: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Black, not Hispanic by US county-0.20-0.21
Cloud cover and Share Hispanic or Latino, any raceWhere Cloud cover is higher, Share Hispanic or Latino, any race tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share Hispanic or Latino, any race by US county-0.50-0.51
Cloud cover and Share Asian, not HispanicCould easily be chance once only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Asian, not Hispanic by US county+0.00-0.08
Cloud cover and Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not HispanicCould easily be chance once only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not Hispanic by US county+0.07+0.09

Highest and lowest

Of 3,144 counties reporting it. These are the two ends of a national ranking. For most measures, that ranking mostly sorts places by income and how urban they are. That is why the place pages compare each place with similar places instead.

Highest

  1. Aleutians West Census Area, AK — 92.3%
  2. Aleutians East Borough, AK — 85.4%
  3. Yakutat City and Borough, AK — 83.9%
  4. Juneau City and Borough, AK — 82.5%
  5. Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK — 82.5%

Lowest

  1. Yuma County, AZ — 23.8%
  2. La Paz County, AZ — 25.4%
  3. Imperial County, CA — 26.2%
  4. San Bernardino County, CA — 29.7%
  5. Maricopa County, AZ — 30%

The middle area reports 54.2%. The middle half of counties falls between 51.2% and 59.4% (the 25th to 75th percentile).

US Counties With the Highest Cloud Cover · US Counties With the Lowest Cloud Cover

All measures · Explore its pairs · How the US county data works