The mean elevation is about 5,500 feet. Nevada has an arid climate and receives the least precipitation of all the states. Skies are clear, sunshine is abundant, and relative humidity is low. There are wide ranges of temperature between day and night. The climate pattern, however, is complicated by differences in elevation.
Mountainous areas are far damper and cooler than low-lying areas.
Mean annual temperatures vary greatly within Nevada because of the comparatively long distance from north to south within the state. In the south, summers are extremely hot and winters are short and mild. Las Vegas January average high temperature is in the lower 50 s, and average lows are near freezing. The growing season, the period from the last killing frost in spring to the first in fall, in this area averages more than 230 days per year. In the northeast, winters are long and cold and summers short and hot.