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Shaded-relief map of Napoleon, Michigan: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
MICHIGAN · JACKSON COUNTY

Napoleon

1,131 people, 960 ft above sea level in Jackson County.

960 ftElevation, city center
1,131People, 2024 estimate
3 sq miLand area
Sunny 42°
Sunny now Dew point 32° · WNW 7 mph · high 43°
City of Napoleon River Interstate 2 miles
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The Napoleon 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 Napoleon

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 3:00 PM EST
RIGHT NOW Jackson County Airport - Reynolds Field (KJXN) · 3:56 PM
Sunny
42° Sunny Feels like 38° · high of 43° near 4 PM
WindWNW 7 mphno gusts
Humidity67%rising to 96% by morning
Pressure30.15 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 32° · 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. 120.31 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Jackson County
NWS Grand Rapids and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 4:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:26 AM5:16 PM ↓
9 h 50 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 25% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
19
GOODAir quality index · ozone
Tomorrow: None, 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
4p
7p
10p
1a
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7a
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1a
4a
7a
10a
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4p
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1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy day
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
43°
33°
44°
30°
49°
32°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
8
7
6
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5
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4
0
0
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5
7
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HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 28 to 35°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 48° / 33°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
43° 29°
0% rain — NW 9 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
46° 26°
0% rain — NNW 6 B
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
50° 28°
0% rain — WSW 4 A
TUE Nov. 17 Sunny Sunny
53° 31°
0% rain — SSW 5 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
55° 37°
0% rain — S 7 A
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
59° 42°
10% rain — WSW 7 B
FRI Nov. 20 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
59° 42°
10% rain — S 5 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 Napoleon about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the Gulf of Alaska three days ago, and over the northern Plains a day ago, about 2,370 miles back along its path. It came down from about 9,600 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from Canada; at 10,000 feet, from the Pacific north of Hawaii. 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, SEVEN YEARS AGO Nov. 13, 2019

The coldest this week has been

4° on Nov. 13, 2019, the coldest reading for this week of the year since 1944. Next is 8° in 1959.

8°
4°
19592019
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Jackson Reynolds Field record since 1944.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Napoleon stands on

Napoleon’s center stands about 960 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 930 ft to 1,020 ft, a difference of 90 ft: gently rolling country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Prospect Hill, about 1,230 ft, 9 miles south.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Marshall Sandstone, from the Carboniferous, 324 to 359 million years old.

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

Napoleon, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
1,000 ft1,100 ft NAPOLEON960 ftLiberty1,060 ftSharon1,080 ftLow point940 ft ← W · LibertyE →

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

Marshall Sandstone

Sandstone. Age: Carboniferous, 324 to 359 million years old. About 17 mi of the line.

Coldwater Shale

Shale. Age: Carboniferous, 324 to 359 million years old. About 7 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 Napoleon’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Napoleon reaches Lake Erie by way of the River Raisin: about 130 river miles. From there it moves on through the Great Lakes, over Niagara Falls and down the St. Lawrence to the Atlantic.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Napoleon≈ 130 mi · Lake Erie
FROM THE CENTER OF NAPOLEON ≈ 130 mi to Lake Erie and the St. Lawrence River Raisin

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Napoleon’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1944 · Jackson Reynolds Field, 13 mi west-northwest

Napoleon has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 83° in July; winter nights fall to about 17° in January. About 32 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

31°17°35°19°45°27°58°37°70°48°79°57°83°61°80°59°74°52°61°41°48°32°36°24° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY NAPOLEON 32.2 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average83° / 61°high / low, the warmest month
January, average31° / 17°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year32.2 inwettest months: August and June
Hottest on record103°FJuly 15, 1977
Coldest on record−20°FJanuary 19, 1994
Wettest day on record3.60 inAugust 16, 2016
Snowiest day on record16.0 inMarch 17, 1973
90° days a year8very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°137and 50 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 7, to the last in spring, about May 4 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingJan. 1 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingNov. 15 to April 3; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchJune through August: 10.7 of the year’s 32.2 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Napoleon normally reaches 48° and falls to 33°. The record high is 67°, in 1956; the record low 12°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.01 in, fell in 1957.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high31°35°45°58°70°79°83°80°74°61°48°36°
Normal low17°19°27°37°48°57°61°59°52°41°32°24°
Rain, inches1.671.521.932.943.403.583.353.812.982.922.331.76
Record high71° (2008)73° (2024)85° (2012)88° (1980)95° (2018)101° (1971)103° (1977)102° (1964)100° (1978)90° (1951)79° (1950)69° (2001)
Record low−20° (1994)−19° (2015)−7° (2014)3° (1982)21° (1966)33° (2025)37° (2001)37° (1976)27° (1991)16° (1976)−5° (1950)−14° (2000)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1944 at Jackson Reynolds Field, 13 miles west-northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Napoleon on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Ann Arbor MI · 27 MI 27 miles east Ypsilanti MI · 33 MI 33 miles east Detroit MI · 60 MI 60 miles east Columbus OH · 164 MI 164 miles southeast Chicago IL · 178 MI 178 miles west Milwaukee WI · 199 MI 199 miles west
FORECASTCITY
Map of Napoleon, Michigan. Explore the plate
MICHIGAN · JACKSON

Napoleon

1,131 people, 960 ft above sea level in Jackson County.

960 ftElevation
1,131People
3 sq miLand
Sunny 42°
SunnyDew point 32°
1

Today in Napoleon

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly cloudy day 43° 1%
7p mostly cloudy night 41° 1%
10p mostly cloudy night 38° 1%
1a mostly cloudy night 35° 1%
4a mostly cloudy night 34° 1%
7a mostly cloudy day 33° 1%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
29
43
A
Sun0%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
26
46
B
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
28
50
A
Tue0%
Sunny Sunny
31
53
A
Wed0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
37
55
A
Thu10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
42
59
B
Fri10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
42
59
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK, SEVEN YEARS AGO · NOV. 13, 2019

4°, the coldest this week of the year has been since 1944.

2

What Napoleon stands on

Napoleon’s center stands about 960 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 930 ft to 1,020 ft, a difference of 90 ft: gently rolling country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Prospect Hill, about 1,230 ft, 9 miles south.

Napoleon, west to east Napoleon960 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center960 ft
Within 3 miles930 to 1,020 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (90 ft of relief)
High point nearbyProspect Hill, 1,230 ft, 9 mi south
Rock at the surfaceMarshall Sandstone
Its ageCarboniferous, 324 to 359 million years old
5

Napoleon’s year

Napoleon has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 83° in July; winter nights fall to about 17° in January. About 32 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 32.2 in
July, average83° / 61° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average31° / 17° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year32.2 in · wettest months: August and June
Hottest on record103°F · July 15, 1977
Coldest on record−20°F · January 19, 1994
Wettest day on record3.60 in · August 16, 2016
Snowiest day on record16.0 in · March 17, 1973
90° days a year8 · very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°137 · and 50 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 7, to the last in spring, about May 4 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Jan. 1 to Feb. 7; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Nov. 15 to April 3; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · June through August: 10.7 of the year’s 32.2 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Napoleon normally reaches 48° and falls to 33°. The record high is 67°, in 1956; the record low 12°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.01 in, fell in 1957.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1944 at Jackson Reynolds Field, 13 miles west-northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 130 mito Lake Erie and the St. LawrenceRiver Raisin

A raindrop that lands in Napoleon reaches Lake Erie by way of the River Raisin: about 130 river miles. From there it moves on through the Great Lakes, over Niagara Falls and down the St. Lawrence to the Atlantic.