FORECAST CITY
Sign in
Shaded-relief map of Amherst Town, Massachusetts: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
MASSACHUSETTS · HAMPSHIRE COUNTY

Amherst Town

40,989 people, 240 ft above sea level in Hampshire County.

240 ftElevation, city center
40,989People, 2024 estimate
28 sq miLand area
Sunny 44°
Sunny now Dew point 29° · WNW 8 mph · high 45°
City of Amherst Town River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Amherst Town 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 Amherst Town

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 1:00 PM EST
RIGHT NOW Chicopee Falls / Westover Air Force Base (KCEF) · 2:55 PM
Sunny
44° Sunny Feels like 39° · high of 45° near 3 PM
WindWNW 8 mphno gusts
Humidity55%rising to 92% by morning
Pressure29.68 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 29° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 70.08 in · 7 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Hampshire County
NWS Norton and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 3:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:39 AM4:29 PM ↓
9 h 50 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 25% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
22
GOODAir quality index · ozone
Tomorrow: 30, 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
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
TEMPERATURE °F
45°
30°
47°
28°
48°
27°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
9
6
5
5
7
7
12
13
10
6
5
3
2
1
6
8
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
5
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 24 to 31° ↑ The front passes More humid: 32° 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 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
45° 25°
0% rain — WNW 10 A
SUN Nov. 15 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
49° 24°
0% rain — NNW 11 A
MON Nov. 16 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
52° 22°
0% rain — NW 6 A
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
57° 28°
0% rain — W 5 A
WED Nov. 18 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
61° 29°
0% rain — W 5 A
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
62° 30°
0% rain — SSW 5 A
FRI Nov. 20 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
63° 32°
0% rain — WNW 5 B
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 Amherst Town about 5,000 feet above the ground was over Canada three days ago, and over the Great Lakes a day ago, about 2,530 miles back along its path. It came down from about 11,200 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. It feels dry all the same. 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 1993 Nov. 16, 1993

The hottest this week has been

77° on Nov. 16, 1993, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1893. Next is 76° in 2020.

76°
77°
20201993
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Amherst record since 1893.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Amherst Town stands on

Amherst Town’s center stands about 240 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 140 ft to 870 ft, a difference of 730 ft: hilly country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Ram Hill, about 1,540 ft, 14 miles west.

The section below crosses 14 rock units mapped at the surface.

Williamsburg to Ware, cut in half

A section northwest to southeast, 24 miles through the town center
0 ft500 ft1,000 ft AMHERST TOWN240 ftWalnut Hill1,450 ftHatfield190 ftEast Hill1,170 ftWest Branch Swift Riverabout 520 ft ← NW · WilliamsburgWare · SE →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 15×. 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

New Haven Arkose

Arkose, siltstone, sandstone. Age: Late Triassic, 202 to 237 million years old. About 6 mi of the line.

Partridge Formation (includes Brimfield Schist of Emerson, 1917)

Mica-schist. Age: Late Ordovician, 449 to 453 million years old. About 4 mi of the line.

Fourmile Gneiss

Biotite-gneiss, amphibolite. Age: Late Ordovician to Silurian, 440 to 454 million years old. About 3 mi of the line.

Waits River Formation

Schist. Age: Early Devonian, 394 to 422 million years old. About 2 mi of the line.

Littleton Formation

Schist, phyllite. Age: Early Devonian, 394 to 422 million years old. About 2 mi of the line.

Dry Hill Gneiss

Gneiss. Age: Neoproterozoic, 610 to 616 million years old. About 2 mi of the line.

From the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation (Horton and others, 2017), the states’ geologic maps joined at a common scale. 8 smaller units 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 Amherst Town’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Amherst Town reaches Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean by way of the Fort and the Connecticut: about 110 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Amherst Town≈ 110 mi · Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean
FROM THE CENTER OF AMHERST TOWN ≈ 110 mi to Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean Fort → Connecticut

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Amherst Town’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1893 · Amherst, 2 mi northwest

Amherst Town has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 83° in July; winter nights fall to about 14° in January. A normal year brings about 36 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 47 inches of water.

34°14°37°15°45°24°58°34°69°45°78°55°83°60°82°58°74°50°62°39°50°29°39°21° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 12 TODAY AMHERST TOWN 46.6 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average83° / 60°high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 14°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow46.6 inwettest months: October and September
Snow a year36.5 insnowiest: February
Hottest on record104°FJuly 4, 1911
Coldest on record−30°FJanuary 22, 1961
Wettest day on record7.56 inOctober 9, 2005
Snowiest day on record18.0 inFebruary 6, 2001
90° days a year12none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°153and 30 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfb

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 8, to the last in spring, about May 8 (median dates)
2Lows below freezingNov. 4 to April 10; normal lows fall below 32°
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Amherst Town normally reaches 50° and falls to 30°. The record high is 71°, in 1973; the record low 10°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.12 in, fell in 1972.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high34°37°45°58°69°78°83°82°74°62°50°39°
Normal low14°15°24°34°45°55°60°58°50°39°29°21°
Rain and melt, in3.362.933.473.793.714.464.124.124.624.743.383.89
Snow, inches8.111.07.31.00.00.00.00.00.00.01.67.5
Record high70° (2007)78° (2018)85° (1945)93° (2002)98° (2010)101° (1919)104° (1911)100° (1948)99° (1953)90° (1908)82° (1950)72° (1998)
Record low−30° (1961)−27° (1961)−17° (1967)8° (1923)24° (1995)29° (1907)39° (1908)32° (1965)25° (1963)12° (1974)−4° (1938)−22° (1917)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Amherst, 2 miles northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Amherst Town on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Springfield MA · 17 MI 17 miles south Worcester MA · 36 MI 36 miles east Boston MA · 76 MI 76 miles east New York NY · 139 MI 139 miles southwest Jersey City NJ · 140 MI 140 miles southwest Newark NJ · 142 MI 142 miles southwest
FORECASTCITY
Map of Amherst Town, Massachusetts. Explore the plate
MASSACHUSETTS · HAMPSHIRE

Amherst Town

40,989 people, 240 ft above sea level in Hampshire County.

240 ftElevation
40,989People
28 sq miLand
Sunny 44°
SunnyDew point 29°
1

Today in Amherst Town

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly cloudy day 45° 1%
6p mostly cloudy night 39° 4%
9p partly cloudy night 34° 2%
12a partly cloudy night 32° 2%
3a partly cloudy night 31° 1%
6a mostly clear night 30° 1%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
25
45
A
Sun0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
24
49
A
Mon0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
22
52
A
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
28
57
A
Wed0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
29
61
A
Thu0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
30
62
A
Fri0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
32
63
B
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1993 · NOV. 16, 1993

77°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1893.

2

What Amherst Town stands on

Amherst Town’s center stands about 240 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 140 ft to 870 ft, a difference of 730 ft: hilly country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Ram Hill, about 1,540 ft, 14 miles west.

Amherst Town, northwest to southeast Amherst Town240 ftEast Hill1,170 ftWest Branch Swift Riverabout 520 ft ← NWSE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 28×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center240 ft
Within 3 miles140 to 870 ft
Lie of the landHilly (730 ft of relief)
High point nearbyRam Hill, 1,540 ft, 14 mi west
5

Amherst Town’s year

Amherst Town has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 83° in July; winter nights fall to about 14° in January. A normal year brings about 36 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 47 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 12 46.6 in
July, average83° / 60° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 14° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow46.6 in · wettest months: October and September
Snow a year36.5 in · snowiest: February
Hottest on record104°F · July 4, 1911
Coldest on record−30°F · January 22, 1961
Wettest day on record7.56 in · October 9, 2005
Snowiest day on record18.0 in · February 6, 2001
90° days a year12 · none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°153 · and 30 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfb
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 8, to the last in spring, about May 8 (median dates)
2Lows below freezing · Nov. 4 to April 10; normal lows fall below 32°
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Amherst Town normally reaches 50° and falls to 30°. The record high is 71°, in 1973; the record low 10°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.12 in, fell in 1972.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Amherst, 2 miles northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 110 mito the AtlanticFort → Connecticut

A raindrop that lands in Amherst Town reaches Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean by way of the Fort and the Connecticut: about 110 river miles.