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« Desert Heat and Humid Moderation - geography. Las Vegas, Nevada Despite its midlatitude location, Las Vegas, in the desert of southern Nevada, has a mild average January temperature of 8°C (46°F).

Deserts are generally warmer thanhumid areas at similar altitudes and latitudes (see Extreme Heat Map Trek).

The absence of clouds cover allows the sun to heat the dry surfaces of deserts more frequentlyand intensely, and these surfaces absorb heat more effectively than vegetation does.

In addition, the lack of moisture allows for little cooling by evaporation.

Temperatureaverages do not fully show that deserts also experience large swings in temperature from daytime highs to nighttime lows.

The same desert surfaces that absorb heatefficiently during the day also radiate it more effectively at night than do surfaces covered with vegetation. Las Vegas in July As days grow longer and the sun rises higher in the northern summer sky, the amount of sunlight reaching Las Vegas increases.

The average July temperature here is ascorching 33°C (91°F), 25 Celsius degrees (45 Fahrenheit degrees) above the January average.

In an average year, Las Vegas receives only 109 millimeters (4 inches) ofprecipitation.

As in other desert locations, the lack of moisture and cloud cover results in a wide annual variation in temperature. Asheville, North Carolina Asheville, North Carolina, sits at about the same latitude and same altitude above sea level as Las Vegas.

Its climate is quite humid, however, and the city receives anaverage of 1209 millimeters (48 inches) in annual precipitation.

The frequent cloud cover reflects much of the solar radiation that would reach Asheville, and on hot daysevaporation and plant transpiration provide a strong cooling effect.

As a result, Asheville's July temperature averages 23°C (73°F), well below that of Las Vegas. Asheville in January The January temperature in Asheville averages 2°C (36°F).

This is 21 Celsius degrees (37 Fahrenheit degrees) below Asheville's July average.

Rainy Asheville experiencesless seasonal variation in temperature than dry Las Vegas does, because Asheville's cloud cover and evaporation moderate the effects of seasonal changes in the sun'sposition. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation.

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