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

Thayer

48 people, 1,120 ft above sea level in Union County.

1,120 ftElevation, city center
48People, 2024 estimate
0 sq miLand area
Clear 36°
Clear now Dew point 25° · ESE 5 mph · high 37°
City of Thayer River Interstate 2 miles
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The Thayer 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 Thayer

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 5:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Creston Municipal Airport (KCSQ) · 5:55 PM
Clear
36° Clear Feels like 32° · high of 37° near 6 PM
WindESE 5 mphno gusts
Humidity64%rising to 96% by morning
Pressure30.25 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 25° · Dry37° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Rain
Friday70% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 60.02 in · 8 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Union County
NWS Des Moines and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 6:18 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:02 AM4:58 PM ↓
9 h 56 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 27% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
31
GOODAir quality index · fine particles
Tomorrow: None, moderate. 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
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear day
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear day
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
TEMPERATURE °F
37°
26°
48°
31°
51°
37°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
6
6
5
5
3
7
8
6
6
6
7
7
8
10
12
12
10
10
10
10
11
14
16
15
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 24 to 37° More humid: 37° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 49° / 27°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
37° 26°
0% rain — SE 6 A
SUN Nov. 15 Partly cloudy; warmer Partly cloudy; warmer
49° 31°
0% rain — S 7 B
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
53° 37°
0% rain — S 11 B
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
55° 43°
0% rain — S 13 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
58° 47°
20% rain — S 16, gusts 29 B
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
59° 46°
10% rain — WSW 5 C
FRI Nov. 20 Showers likely Showers likely
62° 53°
70% rain 0.02–0.5″ S 14, gusts 25 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 Thayer about 5,000 feet above the ground was over Texas three days ago, and over the southern Plains a day ago, about 910 miles back along its path. It rose from near the ground on the way. Near the ground the air came from the Canadian Prairies; at 10,000 feet, from the northern Rockies. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 2001 Nov. 16, 2001

The hottest this week has been

74° on Nov. 16, 2001, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1905. Next is 73° in 1964.

73°
74°
19642001
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Creston 2 SW record since 1905.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Thayer stands on

Thayer’s center stands about 1,120 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 1,030 ft to 1,220 ft, a difference of 190 ft: gently rolling country.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Kansas City Group (limestone, shale), from the Late Pennsylvanian, 299 to 307 million years old.

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

Thayer, cut in half from southwest to northeast

A section southwest to northeast, 24 miles through the town center
1,000 ft1,100 ft1,200 ft THAYER1,120 ftHigh point of the line1,260 ftThompson Riverabout 1,030 ftLow point1,000 ft ← SW · Shannon CityNE →

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

Kansas City Group

Limestone, shale. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 299 to 307 million years old. About 12 mi of the line.

Bronson Group

Limestone, shale. Age: Middle Pennsylvanian to Late Pennsylvanian, 299 to 315 million years old. About 9 mi of the line.

Marmaton Group

Shale, limestone. Age: Middle Pennsylvanian, 307 to 315 million years old. About 3 mi of the line.

Lansing Group

Limestone, shale. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 299 to 307 million years old. About 1 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 Thayer’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Thayer reaches the Gulf of America by way of Fourmile Creek, the Thompson, the Grand River, the Missouri and the Mississippi: about 1,610 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Thayer≈ 1,610 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF THAYER ≈ 1,610 mi to the Gulf of America Fourmile Creek → Thompson → Grand River → Missouri → Mississippi

1,170 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Thayer’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1905 · Creston 2 SW, 18 mi west

Thayer has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 11° in January. About 38 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

30°11°35°14°49°26°61°36°71°49°81°59°85°63°83°61°76°52°64°39°48°26°36°16° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY THAYER 37.9 in rain a year
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° / 11°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year37.9 inwettest months: June and May
Hottest on record111°FJuly 25, 1936
Coldest on record−31°FJanuary 12, 1912
Wettest day on record7.25 inJuly 24, 2008
Snowiest day on record12.0 inDecember 9, 2009
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Highs below freezingDec. 27 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
2Lows below freezingNov. 1 to April 5; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretchMay through July: 14.8 of the year’s 37.9 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Thayer normally reaches 49° and falls to 27°. The record high is 72°, in 1964; the record low −1°, in 1916. The most rain on this date, 0.84 in, fell in 1972.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high30°35°49°61°71°81°85°83°76°64°48°36°
Normal low11°14°26°36°49°59°63°61°52°39°26°16°
Rain, inches1.041.462.533.745.155.174.464.233.702.792.141.48
Record high66° (2002)78° (1930)88° (2026)93° (1952)103° (1934)102° (1934)111° (1936)111° (1918)103° (1939)92° (1997)80° (1938)71° (2021)
Record low−31° (1912)−26° (1996)−20° (1960)7° (1975)23° (2011)37° (2021)39° (1905)39° (1964)24° (1984)2° (1925)−18° (1964)−26° (1989)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1905 at Creston 2 SW, 18 miles west, 180 ft higher. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Thayer on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

West Des Moines IA · 39 MI 39 miles north Waukee IA · 40 MI 40 miles north Des Moines IA · 44 MI 44 miles northeast Omaha NE · 106 MI 106 miles west Kansas City MO · 134 MI 134 miles south Lincoln NE · 138 MI 138 miles west
FORECASTCITY
Map of Thayer, Iowa. Explore the plate
IOWA · UNION

Thayer

48 people, 1,120 ft above sea level in Union County.

1,120 ftElevation
48People
0 sq miLand
Clear 36°
ClearDew point 25°
1

Today in Thayer

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly clear night 37° 0%
9p mostly clear night 31° 0%
12a mostly clear night 29° 0%
3a mostly clear night 27° 0%
6a mostly clear night 26° 0%
9a partly cloudy day 33° 0%
Rain
NEXT RAINFriday · 70%
→
Sat0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
26
37
A
Sun0%
Partly cloudy; warmer Partly cloudy; warmer
31
49
B
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
37
53
B
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
43
55
A
Wed20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
47
58
B
Thu10%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
46
59
C
Fri70%
Showers likely Showers likely
53
62
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 2001 · NOV. 16, 2001

74°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1905.

2

What Thayer stands on

Thayer’s center stands about 1,120 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 1,030 ft to 1,220 ft, a difference of 190 ft: gently rolling country.

Thayer, southwest to northeast Thayer1,120 ftHigh point1,260 ftThompson Riverabout 1,030 ft ← SWNE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center1,120 ft
Within 3 miles1,030 to 1,220 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (190 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceKansas City Group
Its ageLate Pennsylvanian, 299 to 307 million years old
5

Thayer’s year

Thayer has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 11° in January. About 38 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 37.9 in
July, average85° / 63° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average30° / 11° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year37.9 in · wettest months: June and May
Hottest on record111°F · July 25, 1936
Coldest on record−31°F · January 12, 1912
Wettest day on record7.25 in · July 24, 2008
Snowiest day on record12.0 in · December 9, 2009
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Highs below freezing · Dec. 27 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
2Lows below freezing · Nov. 1 to April 5; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretch · May through July: 14.8 of the year’s 37.9 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Thayer normally reaches 49° and falls to 27°. The record high is 72°, in 1964; the record low −1°, in 1916. The most rain on this date, 0.84 in, fell in 1972.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1905 at Creston 2 SW, 18 miles west, 180 ft higher. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,610 mito the Gulf of AmericaFourmile Creek → Thompson → Grand River → Missouri → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Thayer reaches the Gulf of America by way of Fourmile Creek, the Thompson, the Grand River, the Missouri and the Mississippi: about 1,610 river miles.

1,170 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.