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

Sandusky

297 people, 550 ft above sea level in Lee County.

550 ftElevation, city center
297People, 2024 estimate
1 sq miLand area
Clear 41°
Clear now Dew point 27° · Calm · high 41°
City of Sandusky River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Sandusky 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 Sandusky

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 4:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Keokuk Municipal Airport (KEOK) · 4:55 PM
Clear
41° Clear Feels like 41° · high of 41° near 5 PM
WindCalmno gusts
Humidity56%rising to 100% by morning
Pressure30.30 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 27° · Dry37° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 60.07 in · 8 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Lee County
NWS Quad Cities and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 5:15 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:50 AM4:49 PM ↓
9 h 58 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
69
MODERATEAir 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
5p
8p
11p
2a
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8a
11a
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5p
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2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
clear day
clear day
mostly sunny
clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
mostly sunny
TEMPERATURE °F
41°
28°
50°
31°
53°
35°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
0
0
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HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 26 to 37° More humid: 34° by Tuesday

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
41° 28°
0% rain — NE 0 A
SUN Nov. 15 Partly cloudy; warmer Partly cloudy; warmer
52° 30°
0% rain — ENE 0 A
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
55° 34°
0% rain — SSW 4 A
TUE Nov. 17 Sunny Sunny
57° 38°
0% rain — SSE 7 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
60° 48°
10% rain — S 12 B
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
63° 46°
20% rain — W 3 C
FRI Nov. 20 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
64° 52°
20% rain — SSE 9 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 Sandusky about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the open Pacific three days ago, and over the central Plains a day ago, about 2,810 miles back along its path. It came down from about 13,400 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from the Canadian Prairies; at 10,000 feet, from British Columbia. 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 1891. Next is 5° in 1940.

5°
3°
19401959
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Keokuk L&D 19 record since 1891.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Sandusky stands on

Sandusky’s center stands about 550 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 510 ft to 680 ft, a difference of 170 ft: gently rolling country.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Augusta Group (dolostone, limestone), from the Early Mississippian to Middle Mississippian, 331 to 359 million years old.

The section below crosses 7 rock units mapped at the surface.

Sandusky, cut in half from south to north

A section south to north, 24 miles through the town center
500 ft600 ft700 ft SANDUSKY550 ftHigh point of the line760 ftLow point490 ftKeokuk650 ftNauvoo560 ftMississippi Riverabout 510 ft ← SFort Madison · N →

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

Augusta Group

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Early Mississippian to Middle Mississippian, 331 to 359 million years old. About 12 mi of the line.

St. Louis Limestone

Limestone. Age: Middle Mississippian, 331 to 347 million years old. About 5 mi of the line.

Meppen Limestone, Fern Glen Formation, and Burlington-Keokuk Limestone

Limestone. Age: Early Mississippian to Middle Mississippian, 331 to 359 million years old. About 3 mi of the line.

St. Louis and Pella Formations

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Middle Mississippian to Late Mississippian, 324 to 347 million years old. About 2 mi of the line.

Warsaw Formation and Salem Limestone

Limestone. Age: Middle Mississippian, 331 to 347 million years old. About 1 mi of the line.

Kinderhookian formations

Dolostone, limestone, siltstone. Age: Early Mississippian, 347 to 359 million years old. About 0.8 mi of the line.

From the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation (Horton and others, 2017), the states’ geologic maps joined at a common scale. 1 smaller unit along the line are not listed.

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 Sandusky’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Sandusky reaches the Gulf of America by way of the Mississippi: about 1,340 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Sandusky≈ 1,340 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF SANDUSKY ≈ 1,340 mi to the Gulf of America Mississippi

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Sandusky’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1891 · Keokuk L&D 19, 5 mi south

Sandusky has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 86° in July; winter nights fall to about 17° in January. About 40 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

33°17°38°20°50°31°62°41°73°53°82°62°86°67°84°65°77°56°65°44°51°33°38°23° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY SANDUSKY 39.8 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average86° / 67°high / low, the warmest month
January, average33° / 17°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year39.8 inwettest months: May and June
Hottest on record113°FJuly 15, 1936
Coldest on record−27°FFebruary 13, 1905
Wettest day on record5.38 inAugust 23, 2001
Snowiest day on record10.5 inFebruary 19, 1908
90° days a year26about 1 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°117and 36 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 28, to the last in spring, about April 7 (median dates)
2Lows below freezingNov. 16 to March 21; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretchApril through June: 14.7 of the year’s 39.8 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Sandusky normally reaches 51° and falls to 33°. The record high is 78°, in 1999; the record low 7°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 1.32 in, fell in 1926.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high33°38°50°62°73°82°86°84°77°65°51°38°
Normal low17°20°31°41°53°62°67°65°56°44°33°23°
Rain, inches1.611.822.544.215.265.214.083.773.423.322.561.95
Record high72° (1909)78° (2024)88° (2026)92° (1986)102° (1934)104° (2012)113° (1936)110° (1934)102° (2013)94° (2006)82° (1950)73° (2021)
Record low−22° (1982)−27° (1905)−11° (1960)11° (2018)28° (1907)40° (1913)50° (1971)43° (1915)30° (1992)13° (1925)−3° (1964)−20° (1989)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1891 at Keokuk L&D 19, 5 miles south. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Sandusky on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Burlington IA · 28 MI 28 miles northeast Quincy IL · 36 MI 36 miles south Cedar Rapids IA · 105 MI 105 miles north Columbia MO · 115 MI 115 miles southwest Des Moines IA · 139 MI 139 miles northwest St. Louis MO · 140 MI 140 miles southeast
FORECASTCITY
Map of Sandusky, Iowa. Explore the plate
IOWA · LEE

Sandusky

297 people, 550 ft above sea level in Lee County.

550 ftElevation
297People
1 sq miLand
Clear 41°
ClearDew point 27°
1

Today in Sandusky

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear night 41° 0%
8p clear night 36° 0%
11p clear night 33° 0%
2a mostly clear night 31° 0%
5a mostly cloudy night 29° 0%
8a mostly cloudy day 31° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
28
41
A
Sun0%
Partly cloudy; warmer Partly cloudy; warmer
30
52
A
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
34
55
A
Tue0%
Sunny Sunny
38
57
A
Wed10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
48
60
B
Thu20%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
46
63
C
Fri20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
52
64
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 1891.

2

What Sandusky stands on

Sandusky’s center stands about 550 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 510 ft to 680 ft, a difference of 170 ft: gently rolling country.

Sandusky, south to north Sandusky550 ftHigh point760 ftMississippi Riverabout 510 ft ← SN → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center550 ft
Within 3 miles510 to 680 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (170 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceAugusta Group
Its ageEarly Mississippian to Middle Mississippian, 331 to 359 million years old
5

Sandusky’s year

Sandusky has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 86° in July; winter nights fall to about 17° in January. About 40 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 39.8 in
July, average86° / 67° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average33° / 17° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year39.8 in · wettest months: May and June
Hottest on record113°F · July 15, 1936
Coldest on record−27°F · February 13, 1905
Wettest day on record5.38 in · August 23, 2001
Snowiest day on record10.5 in · February 19, 1908
90° days a year26 · about 1 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°117 · and 36 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 28, to the last in spring, about April 7 (median dates)
2Lows below freezing · Nov. 16 to March 21; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretch · April through June: 14.7 of the year’s 39.8 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Sandusky normally reaches 51° and falls to 33°. The record high is 78°, in 1999; the record low 7°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 1.32 in, fell in 1926.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1891 at Keokuk L&D 19, 5 miles south. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,340 mito the Gulf of AmericaMississippi

A raindrop that lands in Sandusky reaches the Gulf of America by way of the Mississippi: about 1,340 river miles.