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Shaded-relief map of Panama, Nebraska: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
NEBRASKA · LANCASTER COUNTY

Panama

232 people, 1,410 ft above sea level in Lancaster County.

1,410 ftElevation, city center
232People, 2024 estimate
0 sq miLand area
Sunny 48°
Sunny now Dew point 26° · SSE 14 mph · high 45°
City of Panama River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Panama 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 Panama

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 3:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Lincoln Municipal Airport (KLNK) · 3:54 PM
Sunny
48° Sunny Feels like 42° · high of 45° near 4 PM
WindSSE 14 mphno gusts
Humidity42%rising to 85% by morning
Pressure30.21 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 26° · Dry39° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Rain
Friday80% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 30.48 in · 11 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Lancaster County
NWS Omaha/Valley and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 4:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:11 AM5:09 PM ↓
9 h 58 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
19
GOODAir quality index · fine particles
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
4a
7a
10a
1p
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
windy
TEMPERATURE °F
45°
27°
51°
33°
54°
42°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
9
8
7
5
3
5
7
9
8
8
8
8
8
10
13
16
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HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 23 to 39° More humid: 38° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 52° / 28°
SAT Nov. 14 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45° 27°
0% rain — SE 12 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
53° 32°
0% rain — S 7 B
MON Nov. 16 Sunny Sunny
55° 39°
0% rain — S 13, gusts 28 B
TUE Nov. 17 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
58° 45°
0% rain — S 18, gusts 30 B
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
63° 45°
10% rain — S 17, gusts 30 C
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
60° 45°
10% rain — ESE 5 C
FRI Nov. 20 Showers likely Showers likely
66° 50°
80% rain 0.1–1.2″ 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 Panama about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the central Plains three days ago, and over the southern Plains a day ago, about 810 miles back along its path. The nine paths traced from around the city fan out, so treat that as a best guess. Near the ground the air came from Texas; 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 1999 Nov. 14, 1999

The hottest this week has been

79° on Nov. 14, 1999, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1893. Next is 78° in 2025.

78°
79°
20251999
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Syracuse record since 1893.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Panama stands on

Panama’s center stands about 1,410 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 1,290 ft to 1,430 ft, a difference of 140 ft: gently rolling country.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Council Grove Group (shale, limestone), from the Permian, 252 to 299 million years old.

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

Cortland to Unadilla, cut in half

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
1,100 ft1,200 ft1,300 ft1,400 ft PANAMA1,410 ftHigh point of the line1,460 ftLow point1,120 ft ← W · CortlandUnadilla · E →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 56×. 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

Council Grove Group

Shale, limestone. Age: Permian, 252 to 299 million years old. About 18 mi of the line.

Admire Group

Shale, limestone. Age: Permian, 252 to 299 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 Panama’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Panama reaches the Gulf of America by way of the North Fork Big Nemaha, the Big Nemaha, the Missouri and the Mississippi: about 1,740 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Panama≈ 1,740 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF PANAMA ≈ 1,740 mi to the Gulf of America North Fork Big Nemaha → Big Nemaha → 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 Panama; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Panama’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1893 · Syracuse, 18 mi east-northeast

Panama has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 88° in July; winter nights fall to about 13° in January. A normal year brings about 26 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 32 inches of water.

34°13°40°17°52°27°64°38°74°50°84°61°88°65°87°62°80°53°67°40°51°27°39°18° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY PANAMA 32.2 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average88° / 65°high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 13°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow32.2 inwettest months: May and June
Snow a year25.5 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record116°FAugust 13, 1936
Coldest on record−33°FDecember 10, 1919
Wettest day on record6.74 inMay 9, 1950
Snowiest day on record12.0 inMarch 14, 1912
90° days a year40about 3 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°148and 38 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 11, to the last in spring, about April 25 (median dates)
2Lows below freezingNov. 3 to March 31; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretchMay through July: 14.4 of the year’s 32.2 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Panama normally reaches 52° and falls to 28°. The record high is 79°, in 1999; the record low 0°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.00 in, fell in 1972.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high34°40°52°64°74°84°88°87°80°67°51°39°
Normal low13°17°27°38°50°61°65°62°53°40°27°18°
Rain and melt, in0.780.981.822.765.634.554.243.482.872.541.451.11
Snow, inches7.77.32.41.20.00.00.00.00.00.91.64.4
Record high71° (2003)83° (1972)96° (2026)98° (1902)106° (1934)108° (1946)115° (1936)116° (1936)110° (1933)98° (1947)84° (1916)78° (1916)
Record low−30° (1974)−32° (2021)−22° (1978)3° (1920)24° (1909)38° (1979)41° (1972)37° (1915)22° (1916)−7° (1925)−7° (1952)−33° (1919)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Syracuse, 18 miles east-northeast, 310 ft lower. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Panama on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Lincoln NE · 17 MI 17 miles northwest Omaha NE · 52 MI 52 miles northeast Kansas City KS · 139 MI 139 miles southeast Kansas City MO · 146 MI 146 miles southeast Overland Park KS · 153 MI 153 miles southeast
FORECASTCITY
Map of Panama, Nebraska. Explore the plate
NEBRASKA · LANCASTER

Panama

232 people, 1,410 ft above sea level in Lancaster County.

1,410 ftElevation
232People
0 sq miLand
Sunny 48°
SunnyDew point 26°
1

Today in Panama

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now partly cloudy day 45° 0%
7p mostly cloudy night 39° 0%
10p partly cloudy night 35° 0%
1a partly cloudy night 32° 0%
4a mostly clear night 29° 0%
7a mostly sunny 28° 0%
Rain
NEXT RAINFriday · 80%
→
Sat0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
27
45
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
32
53
B
Mon0%
Sunny Sunny
39
55
B
Tue0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45
58
B
Wed10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45
63
C
Thu10%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
45
60
C
Fri80%
Showers likely Showers likely
50
66
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1999 · NOV. 14, 1999

79°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1893.

2

What Panama stands on

Panama’s center stands about 1,410 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 1,290 ft to 1,430 ft, a difference of 140 ft: gently rolling country.

Panama, west to east Panama1,410 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 106×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center1,410 ft
Within 3 miles1,290 to 1,430 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (140 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceCouncil Grove Group
Its agePermian, 252 to 299 million years old
5

Panama’s year

Panama has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 88° in July; winter nights fall to about 13° in January. A normal year brings about 26 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 32 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 32.2 in
July, average88° / 65° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 13° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow32.2 in · wettest months: May and June
Snow a year25.5 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record116°F · August 13, 1936
Coldest on record−33°F · December 10, 1919
Wettest day on record6.74 in · May 9, 1950
Snowiest day on record12.0 in · March 14, 1912
90° days a year40 · about 3 of them 100° or more
Nights at or below 32°148 · and 38 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 11, to the last in spring, about April 25 (median dates)
2Lows below freezing · Nov. 3 to March 31; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretch · May through July: 14.4 of the year’s 32.2 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Panama normally reaches 52° and falls to 28°. The record high is 79°, in 1999; the record low 0°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.00 in, fell in 1972.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Syracuse, 18 miles east-northeast, 310 ft lower. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,740 mito the Gulf of AmericaNorth Fork Big Nemaha → Big Nemaha → Missouri → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Panama reaches the Gulf of America by way of the North Fork Big Nemaha, the Big Nemaha, the Missouri and the Mississippi: about 1,740 river miles.

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