Omaha sits on the Missouri River in eastern Nebraska, on the edge of the Great Plains at approximately 41.26°N, 95.94°W. Its deep continental position gives it a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) — with hot, humid summers and cold winters — and one of the widest temperature ranges in the country.

Summer, from June to August, is hot and humid, with July the warmest month — average highs around 31°C — and heatwaves that can exceed 38°C. It is by far the wettest season, when most of the year's rain falls in severe afternoon thunderstorms bringing hail, damaging straight-line winds and tornadoes across the plains.

Winter, from December to February, is cold and dry, with January the coldest month — average highs around -1°C and lows near -10°C, with Arctic outbreaks that plunge below -25°C. Snowfall is moderate, around 70 cm, but the open plains allow it to drift, and blizzards driven by high winds are a real hazard.

Omaha receives around 750–800 mm of precipitation a year, with a strong summer maximum from thunderstorms while winter is dry; the plains grow steadily drier westward, and drought is a chronic risk for the surrounding farmland. Live rainfall, humidity, and pressure readings for the city are shown in the panels above.

Omaha sits squarely in Tornado Alley, where the plains offer no barrier between warm Gulf moisture, dry desert air and cold Canadian outbreaks — a collision that spawns some of the most violent thunderstorms on earth each spring, and blizzards driven by unobstructed wind each winter.

To follow any single measurement in Omaha more closely, use our live instruments: the online barometer for atmospheric pressure, the thermometer for temperature, the hygrometer for humidity, the anemometer for wind speed, the wind vane for wind direction, and the rain gauge for rainfall.