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Climate reading

Atlanta and the Chinese solar calendar

Atlanta gets 246 freeze-free days a year, with a median first freeze on November 21. The calendar names a fortnight Frost’s Descent and opens it on 23 October. Rainy days here are spread fairly evenly through the year (r = -0.08), rather than concentrated in the hot months as they are in the calendar’s home climate (r = 0.88).

The station this page reads from

Weather stationHartsfield, GA
Station IDUSW00013874
Freeze-free days / year246
Median first freezeNovember 21
Median last freezeMarch 20
Rain vs. heatr = -0.08 (evenly spread)
Normals period1991–2020

NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals. A normal is a thirty-year average, not a forecast and not any single year’s weather.

Right now

Rain and heat across the whole year

The classical calendar assumes rain and heat arrive together — across the 24 fortnights the prototype's rainy days and temperature run together (r = 0.88). Where you are they do neither (r = -0.08): rainy days are spread through the year rather than piled into the hot months. The classical 'damp heat' season has no clear counterpart in your record.

Where the calendar is most wrong about Atlanta

Of the twenty-four fortnights, these four are the ones whose name or advice sits furthest from what Atlanta’s weather station actually recorded over thirty years.

Cold Dew 寒露from 2026-10-08

Pentads: 鸿雁来宾 · 雀入大水为蛤 · 菊有黄华

containment and levelling (容平 róng píng). Go to bed early and rise early, up with the rooster.

This is the response to autumn qi — the way of nourishing the gathering-in (養收). Going against it is said to injure the lung, so that winter brings undigested diarrhoea and there is less to carry the storing.

Su Wen, 'Four Qi Regulate the Spirit' (素問·四氣調神大論); pentads from the Yue Ling Qi Shi Er Hou Ji Jie

Average / low / high65.0°F / 55.3°F / 74.8°F
Days with measurable rain22.7%
Days at or below freezing0.0
Daylight11h 31m (-32 min from two weeks ago)
  • This fortnight's advice was written for a place averaging 59.0°F at this point in the year. At Hartsfield, GA the 1991–2020 average is 65.0°F — warmer by 6.0°F.
  • 'Cold Dew' is a phenological marker from the Yellow River valley — what observers saw, not a temperature threshold. The nearest thing your own record has to it: at Hartsfield, GA the first freeze of autumn has arrived by November 21 in half of years — 44 days after this fortnight begins. This fortnight typically carries about 0.0 days at or below freezing.
  • This is the fastest-cooling fortnight of your year: 5.6°F below the one before it.

If Yin deficiency came out high for you. Traditional theory associates Yin deficiency with internal dryness and a sense of heat from within. That is a theoretical association drawn from the classical literature, not a research finding. Your average high this fortnight is 74.8°F, and 22.7% of days typically see measurable rain. Whether any of it matters for you is something to observe, not something this page can tell you.

Major Cold 大寒from 2026-01-20

Pentads: 鸡乳 · 征鸟厉疾 · 水泽腹坚

closing and storing (閉藏 bì cáng). Go to bed early and rise late — wait for the sunlight. Leave the cold, stay near warmth, and do not let the skin sweat open.

This is the response to winter qi — the way of nourishing the storing (養藏). Going against it is said to injure the kidney, so that spring brings weakness and collapse and there is less to carry the bringing-forth.

Su Wen, 'Four Qi Regulate the Spirit' (素問·四氣調神大論); pentads from the Yue Ling Qi Shi Er Hou Ji Jie

Average / low / high45.3°F / 35.8°F / 54.7°F
Days with measurable rain35.5%
Days at or below freezing5.8
Daylight10h 14m (+14 min from two weeks ago)
  • This fortnight's advice was written for a place averaging 34.0°F at this point in the year. At Hartsfield, GA the 1991–2020 average is 45.3°F — warmer by 11.3°F.
  • 'Major Cold' is a phenological marker from the Yellow River valley — what observers saw, not a temperature threshold. The nearest thing your own record has to it: at Hartsfield, GA the last freeze of spring does not clear until March 20, still 59 days off. This fortnight typically carries about 5.8 days at or below freezing.

If Yang deficiency came out high for you. Traditional theory associates Yang deficiency with feeling the cold sooner than the people around you. That is a theoretical association drawn from the classical literature, not a research finding. Your average low this fortnight is 35.8°F, and about 5.8 days typically fall to freezing or below. Whether any of it matters for you is something to observe, not something this page can tell you.

Major Snow 大雪from 2026-12-07

Pentads: 鹖鴠不鸣 · 虎始交 · 荔挺出

Same seasonal passage as above — the classical text gives one instruction per season, not one per fortnight.

Average / low / high47.5°F / 38.7°F / 56.4°F
Days with measurable rain33.9%
Days at or below freezing4.4
Daylight9h 59m (-14 min from two weeks ago)
  • This fortnight's advice was written for a place averaging 36.3°F at this point in the year. At Hartsfield, GA the 1991–2020 average is 47.5°F — warmer by 11.2°F.
  • 'Major Snow' is a phenological marker from the Yellow River valley — what observers saw, not a temperature threshold. The nearest thing your own record has to it: at Hartsfield, GA the first freeze of autumn has arrived by November 21 in half of years — 16 days before this fortnight begins. This fortnight typically carries about 4.4 days at or below freezing.

If Qi stagnation came out high for you. Traditional theory associates Qi stagnation with mood that moves with the season; the classical texts tie autumn's gathering-in to it in particular. That is a theoretical association drawn from the classical literature, not a research finding. Daylight at your latitude is 9h 59m, down 14 minutes from two weeks ago. Whether any of it matters for you is something to observe, not something this page can tell you.

Minor Cold 小寒from 2026-01-05

Pentads: 雁北乡 · 鹊始巢 · 雉雊

Same seasonal passage as above — the classical text gives one instruction per season, not one per fortnight.

Average / low / high44.5°F / 35.4°F / 53.6°F
Days with measurable rain36.4%
Days at or below freezing6.2
Daylight10h 00m (+5 min from two weeks ago)
  • This fortnight's advice was written for a place averaging 33.1°F at this point in the year. At Hartsfield, GA the 1991–2020 average is 44.5°F — warmer by 11.4°F.
  • 'Minor Cold' is a phenological marker from the Yellow River valley — what observers saw, not a temperature threshold. The nearest thing your own record has to it: at Hartsfield, GA the last freeze of spring does not clear until March 20, still 74 days off. This fortnight typically carries about 6.2 days at or below freezing.

If Damp-heat came out high for you. Traditional theory associates Damp-heat with damp and heat arriving together, rather than either one alone. That is a theoretical association drawn from the classical literature, not a research finding. This fortnight runs to an average high of 53.6°F with rain on about 36.4% of days. Whether any of it matters for you is something to observe, not something this page can tell you.

All twenty-four fortnights at Atlanta

Fortnight BeginsAvg °FRainy days %Freezing daysvs. calendar °F
Minor Cold小寒2026-01-0544.536.46.2+11.4
Major Cold大寒2026-01-2045.335.55.8+11.3
Start of Spring立春2026-02-0447.635.73.7+9.3
Rain Water雨水2026-02-1851.035.43.6+8.2
Awakening of Insects惊蛰2026-03-0554.634.01.5+6.6
Spring Equinox春分2026-03-2058.432.81.2+4.6
Pure Brightness清明2026-04-0562.230.90.1+3.4
Grain Rain谷雨2026-04-2066.229.10.1+1.6
Start of Summer立夏2026-05-0570.329.80.0+2.7
Grain Buds小满2026-05-2174.233.20.0+1.9
Grain in Ear芒种2026-06-0577.436.10.0+0.9
Summer Solstice夏至2026-06-2179.837.90.0+0.8
Minor Heat小暑2026-07-0781.038.00.0+0.9
Major Heat大暑2026-07-2381.236.20.0-0.1
Start of Autumn立秋2026-08-0780.433.50.0+2.1
End of Heat处暑2026-08-2378.629.10.0+3.8
White Dew白露2026-09-0775.324.50.0+6.8
Autumn Equinox秋分2026-09-2370.622.80.0+6.7
Cold Dew寒露2026-10-0865.022.70.0+6.0
Frost's Descent霜降2026-10-2359.424.00.6+6.0
Start of Winter立冬2026-11-0754.526.01.4+7.9
Minor Snow小雪2026-11-2250.529.32.6+9.9
Major Snow大雪2026-12-0747.533.94.4+11.2
Winter Solstice冬至2026-12-2245.536.54.6+11.7

‘vs. calendar’ is this fortnight’s local average minus the average where the calendar was written. Rain figures on this page count rainy days, not inches. The two can point opposite ways — summer storms drop more water on fewer days.

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