Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. With a population of 961,855 at the 2020 census, it is the 12th-most populous city in the U.S. Located in Central Texas within the greater Texas Hill Country, it is home to numerous lakes, rivers, and waterways, including Lady Bird Lake and Lake Travis on the Colorado River, and Barton Springs. The city's official slogan promotes Austin as "The Live Music Capital of the World". Austin is the site of South by Southwest (SXSW). The city also adopted "Silicon Hills" as a nickname in the 1990s due to a rapid influx of technology and development companies.
Typical weather
1981–presentCity Rhythm
measuredOpening hours, by kind of place
median across mapped venuesVital absurdities
measured · the Anti-AwardsSame time system
by rhythmWhat to do each season
4winter
short and mild; openmeteo mean 9.0-11.5 °C (Jan coolest 9.0); relatively dry (Dec-Feb 1.8 mm/day); 'short, mild winters'; the rare freeze
- the mild winter — the outdoor/running/cycling season and the Trail of Lights / Zilker Tree (December); the lowest heat constraint
spring
warming and the wettest; openmeteo mean 15.8-24.3 °C; spring storms (May wettest 3.8 mm/day); SXSW (March) and the wildflowers
- SXSW (March) — the annual film/interactive/music festival; the bluebonnet bloom in the Hill Country
- severe spring thunderstorms and the flash-flood season (hill-country limestone runoff)
summer
very hot; openmeteo mean 27.9-30.1 °C (Aug warmest 30.1; Jul-Aug highs frequently ≥35 °C; 29 days/yr ≥38 °C; extreme 44 °C); variable humidity; Jul the driest (1.7 mm/day)
- the oppressive heat — life shifts to Barton Springs (the year-round 21 °C spring-fed pool), the lakes and the night-time live-music economy
- the heat island and the ozone-action days; the daytime outdoors largely deleted
autumn
cooling; openmeteo mean 14.9-26.5 °C; Sep-Oct still stormy; then the comfortable clear window — 'warm to hot spring and fall seasons in-between'
- the Austin City Limits Music Festival (Zilker Park, October) and the best outdoor window
- the late-summer heat lingers into September before the autumn break
What it is known for
Important moments in a year
Sxsw
- South by Southwest (SXSW) — the annual film, interactive media, and music festival
- a defining global tech-and-culture convening
Austin City Limits Festival
- the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park
Trail of Lights
- the Zilker Park Tree and the Trail of Lights — an Austin Christmas tradition
On the record
source-trackedOfficially, Austin has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa under the Köppen climate classification). This climate is typified by long, very hot summers, short, mild winters, and warm to hot spring and fall seasons in-between.
Summers in Austin are very hot, with average July and August highs frequently reaching 35 °C (95 °F) or above. Highs reach 90 °F (32 °C) on 123 days per year, of which 29 days reach 100 °F (38 °C).
The highest ever recorded temperature was 112 °F (44 °C) occurring on September 5, 2000, and August 28, 2011.
An uncommon characteristic of Austin's climate is its highly variable humidity, which fluctuates frequently depending on the shifting patterns of air flow and wind direction.
Because the hills to the west are primarily limestone rock with a thin covering of topsoil, portions of the city are frequently subjected to flash floods from the runoff caused by thunderstorms.
The city's official slogan promotes Austin as 'The Live Music Capital of the World'.
Austin has more music venues per capita than any other U.S. city.
The proliferation of technology companies has led to the region's nickname, 'Silicon Hills'.
Tesla, Inc. has its corporate headquarters in Austin inside Gigafactory Texas, employing over 20,000 people.
Austin is sometimes called the 'home of the breakfast taco.'
The city of Austin has the second-largest number of food trucks per capita in the United States.
73.5% [of Austin city commuters drove alone]. Austin is the largest city in the United States to be served by only one Interstate Highway.
The method behind this atlas — 196 pp. Not published yet.