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Shaded-relief map of Ulysses, Kansas: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
KANSAS · GRANT COUNTY

Ulysses

5,582 people, 3,050 ft above sea level in Grant County.

3,050 ftElevation, city center
5,582People, 2024 estimate
3 sq miLand area
Rain 39°
Rain now Dew point 39° · SE 17 mph · high 45°
City of Ulysses River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Ulysses 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 Ulysses

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 4:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Ulysses Airport (KULS) · 4:55 PM
Rain
39° Rain Feels like 30° · high of 45° near 5 PM
WindSE 17 mphgusts 24
Humidity100%rising to 100% by morning
Pressure29.98 in →steady
Visibility4 mihazy
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 39° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Rain
Today, about 5 PMin about 1 hours · 84% chance · rain
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 50.61 in · 9 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Grant County
NWS Dodge City and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 5:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:24 AM5:35 PM ↓
10 h 11 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% 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
rain
rain
rain
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
fog
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
windy
windy
windy
windy
TEMPERATURE °F
45°
37°
47°
38°
54°
40°
CHANCE OF RAIN
84% · 0.28 in Saturday evening 50%
WIND, MPH
16
15
12
10
9
8
7
7
8
9
9
10
12
14
18
18
15
16
16
18
21
24
30
29
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 37 to 46°

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 Showers likely Showers likely
45° 35°
80% rain — SE 17, gusts 25 A
SUN Nov. 15 Chance of showers Chance of showers
47° 35°
40% rain — ESE 7 B
MON Nov. 16 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
54° 37°
0% rain — S 16, gusts 26 B
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
60° 44°
0% rain — S 22, gusts 36 B
WED Nov. 18 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
66° 37°
0% rain — S 13 C
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
63° 47°
0% rain — SSE 13 C
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers Chance of showers
68° 42°
40% rain up to 0.2″ S 20, gusts 32 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 Ulysses about 5,000 feet above the ground was over Texas three days ago, about 490 miles back along its path. The nine paths traced from around the city fan out, so treat that as a best guess. It came down from about 12,400 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from Texas; at 10,000 feet, from the Great Basin. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 1971 Nov. 16–17, 1971

The wettest two days this week has seen

3.15 inches of rain fell in two days, the most for this week of the year since records began in 1893. The next wettest, 1.65 inches, fell in 1972.

1.65″
3.15″
19721971
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Ulysses 3 NE record since 1893.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Ulysses stands on

Ulysses’s center stands about 3,050 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 2,970 ft to 3,080 ft, a difference of 110 ft: gently rolling country.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Loess (silt), from the Pleistocene to Holocene, less than 2.6 million years old.

The section below crosses 2 rock units mapped at the surface.

Ulysses, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
3,000 ft3,100 ft ULYSSES3,050 ftHigh point of the line3,190 ftLow point2,970 ft ← W · Big BowE →

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

Loess

Silt. Age: Pleistocene to Holocene, less than 2.6 million years old. About 23 mi of the line.

Alluvium

Sand, silt, clay. Age: Pleistocene, less than 2.6 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 Ulysses’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Ulysses reaches the Gulf of America by way of the North Fork Cimarron, the Cimarron, the Arkansas and the Mississippi: about 1,580 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Ulysses≈ 1,580 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF ULYSSES ≈ 1,580 mi to the Gulf of America North Fork Cimarron → Cimarron → Arkansas → Mississippi

Lakes on the way: Murray Lake and Ozark Lake.

600 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Ulysses’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1893 · Ulysses 3 NE, 4 mi east-northeast

Ulysses has a cold semi-arid climate. Summer afternoons average 93° in July; winter nights fall to about 16° in January. A normal year brings about 18 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 18 inches of water.

46°16°50°19°60°27°68°36°78°47°89°59°93°64°90°62°84°53°71°39°57°26°46°18° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY ULYSSES 17.8 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average93° / 64°high / low, the warmest month
January, average46° / 16°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow17.8 inwettest months: July and August
Snow a year17.8 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record116°FJuly 28, 1894
Coldest on record−27°FJanuary 19, 1984
Wettest day on record4.75 inAugust 2, 1976
Snowiest day on record25.0 inFebruary 26, 1903
90° days a year74about 14 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°151and 19 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeCold semi-aridKöppen BSk

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 15, to the last in spring, about April 28 (median dates)
2Highs of 90° and upJune 19 to Aug. 22; normal highs reach 90°
3Lows below freezingOct. 30 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchJune through August: 8.3 of the year’s 17.8 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Ulysses normally reaches 58° and falls to 27°. The record high is 86°, in 1894; the record low −9°, in 1916. The most rain on this date, 0.54 in, fell in 1926.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high46°50°60°68°78°89°93°90°84°71°57°46°
Normal low16°19°27°36°47°59°64°62°53°39°26°18°
Rain and melt, in0.430.321.081.511.962.592.882.871.341.600.490.69
Snow, inches4.23.13.81.40.10.00.00.00.00.11.33.8
Record high83° (1986)90° (2017)98° (1907)103° (1989)103° (2011)111° (1899)116° (1894)109° (1978)107° (1947)100° (2016)91° (2016)86° (1955)
Record low−27° (1984)−20° (1905)−18° (1948)8° (1936)19° (1909)32° (1915)43° (1908)40° (1915)25° (1984)3° (1925)−9° (1916)−21° (2016)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Ulysses 3 NE, 4 miles east-northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Ulysses on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Garden City KS · 39 MI 39 miles northeast Pueblo CO · 184 MI 184 miles west
FORECASTCITY
Map of Ulysses, Kansas. Explore the plate
KANSAS · GRANT

Ulysses

5,582 people, 3,050 ft above sea level in Grant County.

3,050 ftElevation
5,582People
3 sq miLand
Rain 39°
RainDew point 39°
1

Today in Ulysses

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now rain 45° 84%
8p rain 41° 77%
11p rain 39° 37%
2a mostly cloudy night 39° 23%
5a mostly cloudy night 38° 5%
8a mostly cloudy day 37° 2%
Rain
NEXT RAINToday about 5 PM · 84%
→
Sat80%
Showers likely Showers likely
35
45
A
Sun40%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
35
47
B
Mon0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
37
54
B
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
44
60
B
Wed0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
37
66
C
Thu0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
47
63
C
Fri40%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
42
68
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1971 · NOV. 16–17, 1971

3.15 inches in two days, the most for this week since 1893.

2

What Ulysses stands on

Ulysses’s center stands about 3,050 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 2,970 ft to 3,080 ft, a difference of 110 ft: gently rolling country.

Ulysses, west to east Ulysses3,050 ftHigh point3,190 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center3,050 ft
Within 3 miles2,970 to 3,080 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (110 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceLoess
Its agePleistocene to Holocene, less than 2.6 million years old
5

Ulysses’s year

Ulysses has a cold semi-arid climate. Summer afternoons average 93° in July; winter nights fall to about 16° in January. A normal year brings about 18 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 18 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 17.8 in
July, average93° / 64° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average46° / 16° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow17.8 in · wettest months: July and August
Snow a year17.8 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record116°F · July 28, 1894
Coldest on record−27°F · January 19, 1984
Wettest day on record4.75 in · August 2, 1976
Snowiest day on record25.0 in · February 26, 1903
90° days a year74 · about 14 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°151 · and 19 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeCold semi-arid · Köppen BSk
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 15, to the last in spring, about April 28 (median dates)
2Highs of 90° and up · June 19 to Aug. 22; normal highs reach 90°
3Lows below freezing · Oct. 30 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · June through August: 8.3 of the year’s 17.8 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Ulysses normally reaches 58° and falls to 27°. The record high is 86°, in 1894; the record low −9°, in 1916. The most rain on this date, 0.54 in, fell in 1926.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Ulysses 3 NE, 4 miles east-northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,580 mito the Gulf of AmericaNorth Fork Cimarron → Cimarron → Arkansas → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Ulysses reaches the Gulf of America by way of the North Fork Cimarron, the Cimarron, the Arkansas and the Mississippi: about 1,580 river miles.

Lakes on the way: Murray Lake and Ozark Lake.

600 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.