<p>I'm not sure if this has been asked before, but I couldn't find the thread if it has.<br>
I just have a few quick questions about the temperature/weather down in Durham during the school year at Duke.<br>
During the school year, how hot (temp.) does it get?
During the school year, how cold (temp.) does it get?
What would you guess as the 'average' temperature throughout the year?
How comfortable is the weather (scale 1-10)?
Do dorm rooms have air conditioning?</p>
<p>I live 4-5 hours to the west of Durham, past the Great Smokeys.</p>
<p>The range of temps. you might encounter can vary wildly, and the "upper Southern" weather is a bit sporadic. In May you might encounter temps. in the 80s, or as low as the 40s. Jan/Feb are the colder months; temps. probably get down in the mid/lower '20s and on occassion into the teens (but being from Michigan you'll have no trouble at all).</p>
<p>The difference is that there is a great deal of humidity to go with the warmer temps. That is where a/c comes in handy, but a lot of Duke dorms aren't equipped (I'll let someone else explain this, because I'm a bit ignorant of which ones are, and which aren't!).</p>
<p>Oh, the weather scale. 1 being the least pleasant? Weather in the Piedmont...probably a 9. I'm a bit biased, though.</p>
<p>(It would be a 10 but this morning is frickin' freezing!)</p>
<p>I'm from San Diego, where the temperature averages about 70 year round. Durham has great weather - a taste of the seasons, but not overkill. Also, the weather is a bit on crack - such as the weather we had in the 80s about a month ago. And then the flurries a few days later.</p>
<p>During the months you'll be here, rarely higher than upper 80s. Rarely lower than the 20s (last year we dipped into the teens, but not this year).</p>
<p>I'd definitely give the weather a 9, compared to the weather anywhere else in the country (home being a 10). After spending a weekend up at Harvard with some friends, enjoying a heavy snow, I got to fly back to Durham and lounge in the gardens...enjoying 70 degree weather. Basically, our winter is short and mild.</p>
<p>As for the A/C question - Randolph and Blackwell have A/C, but have small rooms. Bell Tower has larger rooms and A/C. The rest of the dorms are either 1930's era or 60's era - for that reason, there are radiators for heating. It is very expensive/difficult to convert buildings that have no form of central heating or cooling - that's why Duke hasn't done so. I lived on the 3rd floor in Bassett as a freshman - sure, it was hot and steamy a bit for that first month of classes, but once the weather cools down, it's fine. You can hang out in the commons room or any other building on campus to enjoy some A/C. Also, if for medical reasons (or "medical reasons"), you can get a window A/C unit.</p>
<p>On West Campus, about 90% of the rooms have A/C. That should hit 100 once they renovate Crowell Quad.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for you're clear and helpful answers. I appreciate it. I already applied, I just didn't know a whole lot on the weather down there, as I freezing my butt off up here in Michigan. I didn't know if it was warm/hot all year like Florida, or a nice mixture as you guys have stated. Now I just have to get in! Thanks again. Any more input would be great too.</p>
<p>During the first and last month of classes (about), the weather can get sticky. I called those the "posters fall off my walls" sort of days while I was a freshman. During fall, winter, and early spring, the humidity becomes more or less unnoticable, save a some very dry winter days.</p>
<p>Again, what makes Duke's weather so amazing is how much shorter and mild our winter is compared to most of the US. The northeast is still freezing a bit this time of year, and we're solidly in spring. Before I left for break, all the dogwoods and daffodils were in bloom - it's a beautiful sight. The temperature is pretty much in the 60s every day now - it's hard to say that further to the north.</p>
<p>much less humid at Duke than it is in the Potomac region near DC and MD....Hot in the summers..you bet. But humiditiy is not as bad as DC region.</p>