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Shaded-relief map of Southern Shores, North Carolina: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
NORTH CAROLINA · DARE COUNTY

Southern Shores

3,127 people, 11 ft above sea level in Dare County.

11 ftElevation, city center
3,127People, 2024 estimate
4 sq miLand area
Clear 46°
Clear now Dew point 28° · W 5 mph · high 49°
City of Southern Shores River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Southern Shores 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 Southern Shores

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 5:00 PM EST
RIGHT NOW Elizabeth City C/G Regional Airport (KECG) · 5:54 PM
Clear
46° Clear Feels like 44° · high of 49° near 6 PM
WindW 5 mphno gusts
Humidity49%rising to 76% by morning
Pressure30.04 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 28° · Dry43° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 120.09 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
! Frost AdvisoryFrost Advisory issued November 14 at 11:47AM EST until November 15 at 9:00AM EST by NWS Newport/Morehead City NC
NWS Newport/Morehead City and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 6:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:38 AM4:56 PM ↓
10 h 17 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
27
GOODAir quality index · ozone
Tomorrow: 28, 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
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
clear night
clear night
clear night
clear day
clear day
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear day
clear day
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
49°
38°
57°
41°
55°
39°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
7
8
9
9
9
12
12
10
7
7
8
9
9
12
12
9
5
5
6
7
7
8
8
7
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 29 to 43° More humid: 40° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 63° / 42°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
49° 36°
0% rain — WNW 8 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
57° 36°
0% rain — NNW 11 A
MON Nov. 16 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
56° 36°
0% rain — NNW 11 A
TUE Nov. 17 Sunny Sunny
61° 36°
0% rain — NNE 3 A
WED Nov. 18 Sunny Sunny
63° 36°
0% rain — ENE 5 A
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
66° 38°
0% rain — E 2 B
FRI Nov. 20 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
67° 41°
0% rain — NNE 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 Southern Shores about 5,000 feet above the ground was over Texas three days ago, and over the Ohio Valley a day ago, about 1,230 miles back along its path. Near the ground the air came from the Mid-Atlantic; at 10,000 feet, from the open Pacific. It feels humid. 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 1985 Nov. 12, 1985

The hottest this week has been

81° on Nov. 12, 1985, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1966. Next is 78° in 2021.

78°
81°
20211985
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Manteo record since 1966.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Southern Shores stands on

Southern Shores’s center stands about 11 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 60 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground. Open water lies within three miles.

Southern Shores, cut in half from south to north

A section south to north, 24 miles through the town center
0 ft SOUTHERN SHORES11 ftHigh point of the line70 ftKill Devil Hills10 ftDuck30 ft ← S · Nags HeadN →

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

Surficial Deposits, Undivided

Sand, clay, gravel. Age: Quaternary, less than 2.6 million years old. About 21 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 Southern Shores’s rain goes

Rain that falls on Southern Shores runs straight into Albemarle Sound and the Atlantic Ocean.

FROM THE CENTER OF SOUTHERN SHORES < 2 mi to Albemarle Sound and the Atlantic Ocean straight to the shore

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Southern Shores’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1966 · Manteo, 15 mi south

Southern Shores has a humid subtropical climate. Summer afternoons average 86° in July; winter nights fall to about 36° in January. About 46 inches of rain fall in a normal year, with about 1 inch of snow.

51°36°53°37°59°43°68°51°75°60°82°69°86°74°84°72°79°68°71°58°61°48°55°40° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC TODAY 46.5 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month
July, average86° / 74°high / low, the warmest month
January, average51° / 36°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year46.5 inwettest months: August and July
Snow a year1.1 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record101°FJuly 29, 2011
Coldest on record−2°FJanuary 21, 1985
Wettest day on record7.07 inOctober 29, 2012
Snowiest day on record10.0 inFebruary 6, 1980
Climate typeHumid subtropicalKöppen Cfa
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Southern Shores normally reaches 62° and falls to 48°. The record high is 76°, in 1985; the record low 26°, in 1976. The most rain on this date, 0.50 in, fell in 1972.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high51°53°59°68°75°82°86°84°79°71°61°55°
Normal low36°37°43°51°60°69°74°72°68°58°48°40°
Rain, inches3.783.163.802.933.524.465.265.644.543.242.883.34
Snow, inches0.70.40.00.00.00.00.00.00.00.00.00.0
Record high77° (1974)81° (2023)87° (1985)93° (1990)95° (2019)101° (2010)101° (2011)101° (1998)96° (1983)93° (2007)84° (1971)81° (1978)
Record low−2° (1985)10° (2015)15° (1978)23° (1984)34° (1966)44° (1972)45° (1984)50° (1985)46° (1991)34° (1979)25° (1976)16° (2004)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1966 at Manteo, 15 miles south. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Southern Shores on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Elizabeth City NC · 31 MI 31 miles northwest Virginia Beach VA · 49 MI 49 miles north Chesapeake VA · 50 MI 50 miles northwest Raleigh NC · 164 MI 164 miles west Durham NC · 177 MI 177 miles west
FORECASTCITY
Map of Southern Shores, North Carolina. Explore the plate
NORTH CAROLINA · DARE

Southern Shores

3,127 people, 11 ft above sea level in Dare County.

11 ftElevation
3,127People
4 sq miLand
Clear 46°
ClearDew point 28°
1

Today in Southern Shores

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly clear night 49° 0%
9p mostly clear night 44° 0%
12a clear night 42° 0%
3a clear night 40° 0%
6a clear night 39° 0%
9a clear day 45° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
36
49
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
36
57
A
Mon0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
36
56
A
Tue0%
Sunny Sunny
36
61
A
Wed0%
Sunny Sunny
36
63
A
Thu0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
38
66
B
Fri0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
41
67
B
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1985 · NOV. 12, 1985

81°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1966.

2

What Southern Shores stands on

Southern Shores’s center stands about 11 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 60 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground. Open water lies within three miles.

Southern Shores, south to north Southern Shores11 ftHigh point70 ft ← SN → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center11 ft
Within 3 miles0 to 60 ft
Lie of the landNearly flat (60 ft of relief)
5

Southern Shores’s year

Southern Shores has a humid subtropical climate. Summer afternoons average 86° in July; winter nights fall to about 36° in January. About 46 inches of rain fall in a normal year, with about 1 inch of snow.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 46.5 in
July, average86° / 74° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average51° / 36° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year46.5 in · wettest months: August and July
Snow a year1.1 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record101°F · July 29, 2011
Coldest on record−2°F · January 21, 1985
Wettest day on record7.07 in · October 29, 2012
Snowiest day on record10.0 in · February 6, 1980
Climate typeHumid subtropical · Köppen Cfa
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Southern Shores normally reaches 62° and falls to 48°. The record high is 76°, in 1985; the record low 26°, in 1976. The most rain on this date, 0.50 in, fell in 1972.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1966 at Manteo, 15 miles south. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

< 2 mito the Atlanticstraight to the shore

Rain that falls on Southern Shores runs straight into Albemarle Sound and the Atlantic Ocean.