Geography

Expansive view of the Monterrey urban area Cerro de la Silla (Saddle Mountain)

The city of Monterrey is 540 metres (1,770 ft) above sea level and located in the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. The Santa Catarina River—dry most of the year on the surface but with flowing underground water—bisects Monterrey from East to West, thus separating the city into north and south halves.

Monterrey is adjoined to San Nicolás de los Garza, García and General Escobedo to the north; Guadalupe, Juárez and Cadereyta Jiménez to the east; Santiago to the south; and San Pedro Garza García and Santa Catarina to the west.

Monterrey lies north of the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range. A small hill, the Cerro del Topo and the smaller Topo Chico are located in the suburbs of San Nicolás de los Garza and Escobedo. West of the city rises the Cerro de las Mitras (Mountain of the Mitres), which resemble the profile of several bishops with their mitres.

Cerro de la Silla (Saddle Mountain) dominates the view east of the city. Cerro de la Loma Larga—South of the Santa Catarina river—separates Monterrey from the suburb of San Pedro Garza García. At the summit of the Cerro del Obispado, north of the river, is the historic Bishopric Palace, site of one of the most important battles of the Mexican-American War.

Natural areas Cola de Caballo. Waterfalls are common in the forested mountain terrain surrounding the city.

The mountains surrounding Monterrey contain many canyons, trails and roads that cross deserts and forests. Suitable trails are available to the general public. The Sierra Madre Oriental mountains south of the city are included in the "Parque Nacional Cumbres de Monterrey" (National Park), which was added to UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Program of Biosphere Reserves in 2006.

Cumbres de Monterrey includes:

Parque Ecológico Chipinque, which contains forested areas (oak and oak-pine mainly). La Estanzuela state park, about 7 km (4 mi) south of Monterrey, a river and forested area. La Huasteca, west of the city, in the municipality of Santa Catarina. El Potrero Chico Climbing Area, north east of the city, in the municipality of Hidalgo. Climate Intense cloud layer over Monterrey

Monterrey is known for its hot weather in summer reaching 40 °C (104 °F) or more for three consecutive months, being one of the warmest major cities in Mexico.

Monterrey has a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSh). Its weather is temperate in spring and autumn and is hot in the summer. The average high in August is 35 °C (95 °F) and the average low is 23 °C (73 °F). Winters are mild. The average January high is 21 °C (70 °F) and the average low in January is 8 °C (46 °F); temperatures below freezing are rare. Rainfall is scarce in winter, but more frequent during May through September. Monterrey frequently experiences extreme weather changes; for example, sometimes reaching 30 °C (86 °F) in January and February, despite these being the coldest months. The most extreme weather changes in summer occur with rainfall, which changes extreme heat to cooler temperatures, and the temporary absence of the northern winds in winter, which can lead to abnormally high temperatures. Seasons are not well defined; the warm season may start in February and may last until September. In April and May 2011 temperatures reached 45 °C (113 °F) or more, causing fires and extreme heat in the city, despite the fact that these months are in spring. Snow is a very rare event, although an accumulation of 20 inches (51 cm) in 8 hours occurred in January 1967. The most recent snowfall was in December 2004, on Christmas Eve. Several sleet and ice events have occurred during January 2007, December 2009, January and February 2010 and February 2011, caused by temperatures around −5 °C (23 °F).

During June 30 – July 2 of 2010, Monterrey was hit by the worst natural disaster in the city's history when Hurricane Alex delivered more than 23 inches of rain around 72 hours with areas reaching up to 1 meter of rain during that same period destroying homes, avenues, highways and infrastructure leaving up to 200,000 families without water for a week or more. The amount of water that fell is equivalent to the average precipitation for a year period. This was about 3–4 times as much rain as when Hurricane Gilbert arrived to the city on September 15, 1988. The death toll of Hurricane Alex was estimated to be around 20.

Climate data for Monterrey (1951–2010) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 38.0 (100.4) 40.0 (104) 43.0 (109.4) 48.0 (118.4) 46.0 (114.8) 45.0 (113) 42.5 (108.5) 42.5 (108.5) 41.0 (105.8) 39.0 (102.2) 39.0 (102.2) 39.0 (102.2) 48.0 (118.4) Average high °C (°F) 20.7 (69.3) 23.2 (73.8) 26.9 (80.4) 30.0 (86) 32.2 (90) 33.8 (92.8) 34.8 (94.6) 34.5 (94.1) 31.5 (88.7) 27.6 (81.7) 24.1 (75.4) 21.2 (70.2) 28.4 (83.1) Daily mean °C (°F) 14.4 (57.9) 16.6 (61.9) 20.0 (68) 23.4 (74.1) 26.2 (79.2) 27.9 (82.2) 28.6 (83.5) 28.5 (83.3) 26.2 (79.2) 22.4 (72.3) 18.4 (65.1) 15.1 (59.2) 22.3 (72.1) Average low °C (°F) 8.2 (46.8) 10.0 (50) 13.2 (55.8) 16.7 (62.1) 20.2 (68.4) 22.0 (71.6) 22.3 (72.1) 22.5 (72.5) 20.9 (69.6) 17.2 (63) 12.7 (54.9) 9.1 (48.4) 16.3 (61.3) Record low °C (°F) −7 (19) −7 (19) −1 (30) 5.0 (41) 8.0 (46.4) 11.5 (52.7) 11.0 (51.8) 12.2 (54) 2.0 (35.6) 2.0 (35.6) −5 (23) −7.5 (18.5) −7.5 (18.5) Precipitation mm (inches) 16.6 (0.654) 16.5 (0.65) 19.9 (0.783) 29.7 (1.169) 52.3 (2.059) 68.4 (2.693) 43.0 (1.693) 79.6 (3.134) 150.6 (5.929) 77.2 (3.039) 23.0 (0.906) 14.1 (0.555) 590.9 (23.264) Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 4.2 3.8 3.4 4.5 5.7 5.6 3.9 6.4 8.2 6.5 4.1 3.4 59.7 Avg. snowy days 0.03 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.03  % humidity 67 64 58 61 66 66 63 63 69 71 68 69 65 Mean monthly sunshine hours 193 137 155 167 163 178 194 226 167 142 196 185 2,104 Source #1: Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (extremes 1929–2010, humidity and sun 1981–2000) Source #2: Colegio de Postgraduados (snowy days 1951–1980)