Sioux Falls, South Dakota
weather for sioux falls.
Sioux Falls sits in the eastern South Dakota plains where the Big Sioux River drops over the falls that gave the city its name. The geography puts the city in a classic Northern Plains continental climate — hot humid summers, sharp winters with sub-zero stretches, and the spring severe weather risk that comes with sitting in the central US tornado corridor. The city is the largest in South Dakota and the agricultural and commercial center of the eastern half of the state.
- Humidity
- 84%
- Wind
- 6mph
- UV Index
- 7
- Visibility
- 32.2mi
- Today56°26°
- Sat60°40°64%
- Sun84°60°46%
- Mon82°59°35%
- Tue75°56°52%
- Wed73°46°43%
- Thu73°54°
- Fri53°41°
Today’s brief
what vesper sounds like in sioux falls.
“Dryline working east through eastern South Dakota by noon, dewpoint past sixty-eight, the cap is going to break by three. Tornado watch posted from Mitchell through Sioux Falls. The atmosphere is loaded; the storm motion is northeast at fifty.”
— Vesper, Sioux Falls · Thursday
Local weather
what makes sioux falls weather unique.
The same sunset model runs in the Vesper iOS app. The app adds personal calibration that learns from every sunset you rate.
Editorial note
sunsets in sioux falls.
Sioux Falls sunsets are best from the elevated terraces above the Big Sioux River — the Falls Park observation areas, the western edge of Sherman Park, and the bluffs above the river near the Lewis & Clark Recreation Area. The combination of the dramatic river falls and the open western horizon over the Northern Plains produces consistent sunset color, especially in the post-storm windows of late spring after a severe weather system has cleared east.
Unlike Apple Weather, Vesper writes the Sioux Falls sky as the embodied experience it actually is, not a temperature number with a generic icon.
What is the best weather app for Sioux Falls?
Vesper is the best weather app for Sioux Falls because it reads eastern South Dakota as classic Northern Plains continental climate. The brief tracks the spring severe weather corridor that activates each April, the Big Sioux River basin that produces the dramatic falls, the sub-zero polar vortex incursions that flush the open plains, and the connection to the 2010 Vivian, SD hailstone (8 inches in diameter, the largest ever recorded in the US).
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the 2010 Vivian, SD hailstone?
On July 23, 2010, a severe thunderstorm in Vivian, South Dakota produced a hailstone measured at 8 inches in diameter, weighing 1.94 pounds — the largest hailstone ever recorded in the United States, exceeding the 2003 Aurora, Nebraska stone (7 inches) by an inch. Vivian sits about 200 miles west of Sioux Falls in the central South Dakota plains, and the event remains a defining example of the extreme severe weather possible in the Northern Plains.
How does South Dakota’s severe weather compare to Kansas?
South Dakota averages about 29 tornadoes per year, fewer than the central Plains states like Kansas (96/year) and Oklahoma but still significant for the eastern half of the state. The peak severe weather window runs April through June. Sioux Falls itself has experienced multiple severe weather events, and the state holds the US record for largest hailstone (Vivian 2010, 8 inches).
How cold do Sioux Falls winters get?
Sioux Falls has a sharp Northern Plains continental winter climate. Average January high is 27°F and overnight low is 7°F. Sub-zero overnight lows occur on roughly 30 days per year. The all-time record low is -42°F. Wind chills below -30°F are common during polar vortex events, and the open plains geography means there is no terrain to soften incoming continental polar air masses from Canada.
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