The Northern Plains region is not known for its hot weather. However, we are located in the center of the North American continent and are entirely land locked, so our weather is prone to go to extremes. There are no solid barriers keeping all the hot weather in the south. So when it gets hot, it can get very hot. The average number of days a year in Fargo Moorhead at 90 degrees or warmer is 13. Most years go by with about 5-10 of these 90 degree days but occasionally we will have a summer when weather typically found in Kansas comes our way. From 1987 through 1989, Fargo Moorhead averaged 28 days a year at or above 90. Those three summers also averaged three 100 days each, including a scorching 106 on July 5, 1988. Historically, most of these summers with a lot of hot weather are also quite dry. When the topsoil is dry, the ground heats up more efficiently on sunny days, causing the lower atmosphere to heat up as well.
