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Shaded-relief map of Brighton, Iowa: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
IOWA · WASHINGTON COUNTY

Brighton

592 people, 750 ft above sea level in Washington County.

750 ftElevation, city center
592People, 2024 estimate
1 sq miLand area
Sunny 45°
Sunny now Dew point 27° · Calm · high 44°
City of Brighton River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Brighton 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 Brighton

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 3:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Mount Pleasant Municipal Airport (KMPZ) · 3:35 PM
Sunny
45° Sunny Feels like 45° · high of 44° near 3 PM
WindCalmno gusts
Humidity49%rising to 88% by morning
Pressure30.31 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 27° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Showers
Friday30% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 60.06 in · 8 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Washington County
NWS Quad Cities and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 3:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:54 AM4:49 PM ↓
9 h 55 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
138
UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPSAir quality index · fine particles
Tomorrow: 40, good. 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
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
clear day
clear night
clear night
clear night
partly cloudy night
mostly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear day
clear day
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
44°
26°
49°
29°
53°
34°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
0
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HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 22 to 34°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 80° / 62°
SAT Nov. 14 Sunny Sunny
44° 25°
0% rain — W 0 A
SUN Nov. 15 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
51° 27°
0% rain — NE 0 A
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
54° 33°
0% rain — SSW 4 A
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
57° 38°
0% rain — SSE 7 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
59° 47°
20% rain — S 9 B
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
62° 45°
20% rain — WSW 1 C
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers Chance of showers
63° 51°
30% rain up to 0.1″ SSE 7 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 Brighton about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the Canadian Prairies three days ago, and over the central Plains a day ago, about 1,470 miles back along its path. Most of the nine paths traced from around the city agree. Near the ground the air came from the Canadian Prairies; at 10,000 feet, from the Pacific Northwest. It has stayed over land, which is why it feels dry. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses and the GFS beyond them, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 1959 Nov. 17, 1959

The coldest this week has been

−3° on Nov. 17, 1959, the coldest reading for this week of the year since 1893. Next is 1° in 1940.

1°
−3°
19401959
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Washington record since 1893.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Brighton stands on

Brighton’s center stands about 750 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 610 ft to 750 ft, a difference of 140 ft: gently rolling country.

The section below crosses 3 rock units mapped at the surface.

Brighton, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
600 ft700 ft800 ft BRIGHTON750 ftHigh point of the line810 ftSkunk Riverabout 630 ft ← WE →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 64×. 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

St. Louis and Pella Formations

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Middle Mississippian to Late Mississippian, 324 to 347 million years old. About 12 mi of the line.

Augusta Group

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Early Mississippian to Middle Mississippian, 331 to 359 million years old. About 8 mi of the line.

Lower Cherokee Group and Raccoon Creek Group

Shale, sandstone, siltstone. Age: Early Pennsylvanian to Middle Pennsylvanian, 307 to 324 million years old. About 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 Brighton’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Brighton reaches the Gulf of America by way of Burr Oak Creek, the Skunk and the Mississippi: about 1,430 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Brighton≈ 1,430 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF BRIGHTON ≈ 1,430 mi to the Gulf of America Burr Oak Creek → Skunk → Mississippi

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Brighton’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1893 · Washington, 10 mi northeast

Brighton has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 12° in January. A normal year brings about 25 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 38 inches of water.

30°12°35°16°48°27°62°38°72°50°81°60°85°63°83°61°77°51°64°40°49°28°36°18° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY BRIGHTON 37.9 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average85° / 63°high / low, the warmest month
January, average30° / 12°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow37.9 inwettest months: June and May
Snow a year25.2 insnowiest: February
Hottest on record113°FJuly 15, 1936
Coldest on record−32°FJanuary 16, 2009
Wettest day on record7.35 inAugust 3, 1943
Snowiest day on record15.5 inJanuary 25, 1898
90° days a year20very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°140and 45 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 13, to the last in spring, about April 21 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingDec. 25 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingNov. 4 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchMay through July: 14.4 of the year’s 37.9 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Brighton normally reaches 49° and falls to 28°. The record high is 76°, in 1999; the record low 3°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 1.13 in, fell in 1951.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high30°35°48°62°72°81°85°83°77°64°49°36°
Normal low12°16°27°38°50°60°63°61°51°40°28°18°
Rain and melt, in1.251.562.323.655.115.174.134.183.603.032.231.71
Snow, inches7.58.12.30.80.00.00.00.00.00.41.44.7
Record high70° (1989)80° (2024)89° (2026)94° (1930)103° (1934)107° (1936)113° (1936)109° (1930)102° (1933)96° (1938)82° (2016)74° (2021)
Record low−32° (2009)−29° (1905)−16° (1962)7° (1899)23° (2005)35° (1903)45° (2008)39° (1915)23° (1942)6° (1925)−7° (1898)−25° (1924)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Washington, 9 miles northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Brighton on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Ottumwa IA · 33 MI 33 miles west Iowa City IA · 36 MI 36 miles northeast Cedar Rapids IA · 55 MI 55 miles north Des Moines IA · 97 MI 97 miles west Joliet IL · 192 MI 192 miles east St. Louis MO · 194 MI 194 miles southeast
FORECASTCITY
Map of Brighton, Iowa. Explore the plate
IOWA · WASHINGTON

Brighton

592 people, 750 ft above sea level in Washington County.

750 ftElevation
592People
1 sq miLand
Sunny 45°
SunnyDew point 27°
1

Today in Brighton

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear day 44° 0%
6p clear night 37° 0%
9p clear night 31° 0%
12a clear night 29° 0%
3a mostly clear night 27° 0%
6a mostly cloudy night 26° 0%
Showers
NEXT RAINFriday · 30%
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
25
44
A
Sun0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
27
51
A
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
33
54
A
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
38
57
A
Wed20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
47
59
B
Thu20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45
62
C
Fri30%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
51
63
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1959 · NOV. 17, 1959

−3°, the coldest this week of the year has been since 1893.

2

What Brighton stands on

Brighton’s center stands about 750 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 610 ft to 750 ft, a difference of 140 ft: gently rolling country.

Brighton, west to east Brighton750 ftHigh point810 ftSkunk Riverabout 630 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center750 ft
Within 3 miles610 to 750 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (140 ft of relief)
5

Brighton’s year

Brighton has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 12° in January. A normal year brings about 25 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 38 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 37.9 in
July, average85° / 63° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average30° / 12° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow37.9 in · wettest months: June and May
Snow a year25.2 in · snowiest: February
Hottest on record113°F · July 15, 1936
Coldest on record−32°F · January 16, 2009
Wettest day on record7.35 in · August 3, 1943
Snowiest day on record15.5 in · January 25, 1898
90° days a year20 · very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°140 · and 45 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 13, to the last in spring, about April 21 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Dec. 25 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Nov. 4 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · May through July: 14.4 of the year’s 37.9 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Brighton normally reaches 49° and falls to 28°. The record high is 76°, in 1999; the record low 3°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 1.13 in, fell in 1951.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Washington, 9 miles northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,430 mito the Gulf of AmericaBurr Oak Creek → Skunk → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Brighton reaches the Gulf of America by way of Burr Oak Creek, the Skunk and the Mississippi: about 1,430 river miles.