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Shaded-relief map of Cottonwood, Arizona: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ARIZONA · APACHE COUNTY

Cottonwood

167 people, 6,070 ft above sea level in Apache County.

6,070 ftElevation, city center
167People, 2024 estimate
0 sq miLand area
Sunny 43°
Sunny now Dew point 37° · W 3 mph · high 37°
City of Cottonwood River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Cottonwood plate. Relief from Copernicus GLO-30; rivers and lakes from USGS NHD; watersheds from the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset; roads and city limits from Census TIGER 2024.

MILE1
TODAY

Today in Cottonwood

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 4:00 PM MST
RIGHT NOW Window Rock Airport (KRQE) · 4:53 PM
Sunny
43° Sunny Feels like 41° · high of 37° near 5 PM
WindW 3 mphno gusts
Humidity79%rising to 100% by morning
Pressure29.99 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 37° · Dry28° by Sunday: drier air arrives
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Showers
Tuesday90% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 60.18 in · 8 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Apache County
NWS Flagstaff and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 5:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:55 AM5:12 PM ↓
10 h 17 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 27% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
—
Air quality index ·
No pollen source yet.

The next three days, hour by hour

Sky: clear, cloudy, night Rain likely National Blend of Models
SATURDAY, NOV. 14
SUNDAY, NOV. 15
MONDAY, NOV. 16
TUESDAY, NOV. 17
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
mostly clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
TEMPERATURE °F
37°
29°
46°
33°
50°
35°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
9
6
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
4
5
4
3
2
3
4
5
8
13
16
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 28 to 37°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 57° / 21°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
37° 28°
0% rain — W 7 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
47° 31°
0% rain — N 2 A
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
50° 34°
0% rain — S 4 A
TUE Nov. 17 Showers likely Showers likely
49° 32°
90% rain 0.09–0.5″ SW 17, gusts 33 B
WED Nov. 18 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
42° 29°
10% rain — S 3 C
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
48° 32°
30% rain — SSW 10, gusts 26 B
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers; cooler Chance of showers; cooler
39° 24°
50% rain up to 0.4″ W 12 C
How sure are we? AModels agree: highs within 4° BSome spread: within 8° CWide spread: check back
Range from the National Blend of Models percentiles · graded on Forecast Scores
AIR MAIL

Where today’s air came from

The air arriving over Cottonwood about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the southern Plains three days ago, and over Texas a day ago, about 670 miles back along its path. Most of the nine paths traced from around the city agree. It came down from about 10,100 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from the southern Rockies; at 10,000 feet, from Texas. It has stayed over land, which is why it feels dry. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses, nine paths at each of three heights.

MILE2
THE GROUND

What Cottonwood stands on

Cottonwood’s center stands about 6,070 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 5,950 ft to 6,900 ft, a difference of 950 ft: steep hill country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Rain Mountain, about 7,770 ft, 15 miles north-northwest.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows San Rafael Group (sandstone, siltstone), from the Early Jurassic to Late Jurassic, 160 to 180 million years old.

The section below crosses 4 rock units mapped at the surface.

Cottonwood, cut in half from southwest to northeast

A section southwest to northeast, 24 miles through the town center
6,000 ft6,500 ft7,000 ft COTTONWOOD6,070 ftHigh point of the line7,370 ftLow point5,850 ft ← SWNE →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 13×. The colored band under the surface is the rock the state geologic map shows at the surface, not a picture of what lies beneath.

Rock at the surface along the line

Cretaceous sedimentary rocks

Sandstone, shale. Age: Late Cretaceous, 88 to 97 million years old. About 9 mi of the line.

San Rafael Group

Sandstone, siltstone. Age: Early Jurassic to Late Jurassic, 160 to 180 million years old. About 9 mi of the line.

Morrison Formation

Sandstone, siltstone, mudstone. Age: Late Jurassic, 145 to 160 million years old. About 6 mi of the line.

Glen Canyon Group

Sandstone. Age: Late Triassic to Early Jurassic, 180 to 210 million years old. About 0.5 mi of the line.

From the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation (Horton and others, 2017), the states’ geologic maps joined at a common scale.

Heights from Copernicus GLO-90 (a surface model: it includes buildings and tree canopy); summits from USGS GNIS; rivers from USGS NHDPlus HR; rock from the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation.
MILE3
THE WATER

Where Cottonwood’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Cottonwood reaches the Gulf of California by way of Nazlini Wash, Chinle Wash, Chinle Creek, the San Juan and the Colorado: about 1,130 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Cottonwood≈ 1,130 mi · the Gulf of California
FROM THE CENTER OF COTTONWOOD ≈ 1,130 mi to the Gulf of California Nazlini Wash → Chinle Wash → Chinle Creek → San Juan → Colorado

Lakes on the way: Lake Mead, Lake Powell, Lake Mohave and Lake Havasu.

290 miles of the trip are on the Colorado.

Seldom reaches the sea. Dams and canals now take nearly all of the Colorado before its old delta in Mexico.

Traced down the USGS NHDPlus V2.1 river network from the Census center point of Cottonwood; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Cottonwood on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Farmington NM · 106 MI 106 miles northeast Flagstaff AZ · 115 MI 115 miles southwest Rio Rancho NM · 187 MI 187 miles east Albuquerque NM · 194 MI 194 miles east
FORECASTCITY
Map of Cottonwood, Arizona. Explore the plate
ARIZONA · APACHE

Cottonwood

167 people, 6,070 ft above sea level in Apache County.

6,070 ftElevation
167People
0 sq miLand
Sunny 43°
SunnyDew point 37°
1

Today in Cottonwood

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly clear night 37° 1%
8p mostly clear night 33° 1%
11p clear night 31° 0%
2a mostly clear night 30° 0%
5a mostly clear night 30° 0%
8a mostly sunny 33° 0%
Showers
NEXT RAINTuesday · 90%
→
Sat0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
28
37
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
31
47
A
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
34
50
A
Tue90%
Showers likely Showers likely
32
49
B
Wed10%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
29
42
C
Thu30%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
32
48
B
Fri50%
Chance of showers; cooler Chance of showers; cooler
24
39
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
2

What Cottonwood stands on

Cottonwood’s center stands about 6,070 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 5,950 ft to 6,900 ft, a difference of 950 ft: steep hill country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Rain Mountain, about 7,770 ft, 15 miles north-northwest.

Cottonwood, southwest to northeast Cottonwood6,070 ft ← SWNE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 24×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center6,070 ft
Within 3 miles5,950 to 6,900 ft
Lie of the landSteep hill country (950 ft of relief)
High point nearbyRain Mountain, 7,770 ft, 15 mi north-northwest
Rock at the surfaceSan Rafael Group
Its ageEarly Jurassic to Late Jurassic, 160 to 180 million years old
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,130 mito the Gulf of CaliforniaNazlini Wash → Chinle Wash → Chinle Creek → San Juan → Colorado

A raindrop that lands in Cottonwood reaches the Gulf of California by way of Nazlini Wash, Chinle Wash, Chinle Creek, the San Juan and the Colorado: about 1,130 river miles.

Lakes on the way: Lake Mead, Lake Powell, Lake Mohave and Lake Havasu.

290 miles of the trip are on the Colorado.

Seldom reaches the sea. Dams and canals now take nearly all of the Colorado before its old delta in Mexico.