This report describes the typical weather at the Lakefront Airport (New Orleans, Louisiana, United States) weather station over the course of an average March. It is based on the historical records from 2007 to 2012. Earlier records are either unavailable or unreliable.
New Orleans, Louisiana has a warm humid temperate climate with hot summers and no dry season. The area within 25 mi of this station is covered by oceans and seas (41%), croplands (32%), forests (11%), built-up areas (6%), and lakes and rivers (5%).
The month of March is characterized by rising daily high temperatures, with daily highs increasing from 68°F to 76°F over the course of the month, exceeding 82°F or dropping below 59°F only one day in ten.
Over the course of March, the length of the day is gradually increasing. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day increases by 54 minutes, implying an average day-over-day increase of 1.7 minutes.
The shortest day of the month is March 1 with 11:35 hours of daylight; the longest day is March 31 with 12:29 hours of daylight.
The earliest sunrise is at 6:15am on March 10; the latest sunset is at 7:19pm on March 31; the latest sunrise is at 7:14am on March 11; the earliest sunset is at 6:00pm on March 1.
Daylight savings time (DST) starts at 3:00am on March 11, 2012, shifting sunrise and sunset to an hour later.
The median cloud cover ranges from 26% (mostly clear) to 37% (mostly clear). The trend is for the sky to be clearing with the median cloud cover decreasing by 11% from the start to the end of the month.
On March 31, the clearest day of the month, the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 67% of the time, and overcast or mostly cloudy 31% of the time.
On March 1, the cloudiest day of the month, the sky is overcast, mostly cloudy, or partly cloudy 42% of the time, and clear or mostly clear 53% of the time.
The probability that precipitation will be observed at this location varies throughout the month. Precipitation is most likely around March 9, occurring in 29% of days. Precipitation is least likely around March 23, occurring in 25% of days.
Throughout March, the most common forms of precipitation are light rain, moderate rain, thunderstorms, and heavy rain.
Light rain is the most severe precipitation observed during 36% of those days with precipitation. It is most likely around March 28, when it is observed during 10% of all days.
Moderate rain is the most severe precipitation observed during 23% of those days with precipitation. It is most likely around March 1, when it is observed during 8% of all days.
Thunderstorms are the most severe precipitation observed during 21% of those days with precipitation. They are most likely around March 5, when it is observed during 6% of all days.
Heavy rain is the most severe precipitation observed during 20% of those days with precipitation. It is most likely around March 9, when it is observed during 6% of all days.
Either snow is exceptionally unlikely to fall at this location in March or this station does not reliably report precipitation types.
The relative humidity typically ranges from 53% (mildly humid) to 91% (very humid) over the course of a typical March, rarely dropping below 40% (comfortable) and reaching as high as 98% (very humid).
The air is driest around March 3, at which time the relative humidity drops below 60% (mildly humid) three days out of four; it is most humid around March 16, rising above 88% (very humid) three days out of four.
Dew point is often a better measure of how comfortable a person will find the weather than relative humidity because it more directly relates to whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid.
Over the course of a typical March, the dew point typically varies from 45°F (dry) to 64°F (mildy humid) and is rarely below 33°F (dry) or above 70°F (muggy).
The time of the month between March 1 and March 31 is the most comfortable, with dew points that are neither too dry nor too muggy.
Over the course of March typical wind speeds vary from 2 mph to 20 mph (light air to fresh breeze), rarely exceeding 28 mph (strong breeze).
The highest average wind speed of 12 mph (moderate breeze) occurs around March 1, at which time the average daily maximum wind speed is 20 mph (fresh breeze).
The lowest average wind speed of 11 mph (gentle breeze) occurs around March 21, at which time the average daily maximum wind speed is 17 mph (moderate breeze).