central and south texas weather?

Question

Why is the weather in Austin sooo different from that of Houston? They're only two hours away from each other. The "hill country" is not high hills so I don't think the hills have anything to do with it....

Answer 1

I'm not too familiar with the terrain of Texas being from Minnesota, however terrain can and does affect weather on a localized area if the terrain is 'different' enough.

However, I'm guessing the biggest reason for the difference is the Gulf of Mexico. Large bodies of water (even a big lake) can drastically affect the way nearby land locations respond to weather conditions that may be affecting other parts of the state.

For example, up here in Minnesota the north shore of lake superior might have temperatures in the 40s when the rest of the state is in the 80s or 90s. Usually it depends on the direction the wind is.

My guess is that in the winter time with a southerly wind, you'll find the biggest differencesin weather between Austin and Houston. If it's cold enough and you're in advance of a cold front, you might see snow or ice while Houston might have rain and thunderstorms and much warmer temperatures. All due to the gulf of mexico.

The reason is because large bodies of water do not change in temperature very much from season to season... at least not nearly as much as land does. So when air blows over the water you are transporting that temperature and moisture content over the land, but usually not very far inland because the land will modify the transported atmosphere and it will quickly disperse into whatever the mean land airmass is like.

Answer 2

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