Rain, sleet, snow, hail, wintry mix. Precipitation takes on many forms, and the degree to which climate change affects precipitation levels comes down to something almost everyone learns about in school—Earth's water cycle. A system in endless motion, the water cycle traces the process through which water exists in its three primary phases—liquid, solid, and gas—as it moves perpetually between the Earth and its atmosphere.
Increases in precipitation frequency and intensity are markers of climate change. When temperatures rise and oceans grow warmer, the amount of water that evaporates into the atmosphere—and the speed at which it does so—also increases. As atmospheric circulation carries the moisture-rich air over land or pushes it into a storm system, heavy rain or snow is often the result.
The continental U.S. on average received about 30 inches of precipitation between March 2022 and February 2023. Traditionally "wet" regions—such as Washington state and Alaska in the northwest and Georgia and Mississippi in the southeast—continue to have some of the rainiest counties in the United States. Other areas such as Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, as well as pockets of the South and of California, experience the opposite extreme: drought, also largely a product of climate change.
Stacker cited data from the National Centers for Environmental Information to identify the counties in Tennessee that receive the most precipitation through rain, sleet, or snow. Counties are ranked by five-year precipitation averages in inches as of February 2023 with rainfall over the past year serving as a tiebreaker. Supplementary data on how last year's precipitation compares to the 100-year average for the area is also included.
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#50. Clay County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.18 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 50.42 inches (#45 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -2.12 inches below norm
#49. Hardeman County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.28 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 51.47 inches (#54 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.22 inches below norm
#48. Loudon County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.43 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 52.73 inches (#67 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.06 inches above norm
#47. Henderson County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.49 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 49.47 inches (#51 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -2.30 inches below norm
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6 / 50#45. Decatur County
- Five-year precipitation average: 62.97 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 48.26 inches (#43 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -4.25 inches below norm
#44. Jackson County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.22 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 51.20 inches (#46 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -2.14 inches below norm
#43. DeKalb County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.39 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.83 inches (#62 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.60 inches above norm
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9 / 50#42. Chester County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.45 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 50.01 inches (#57 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.82 inches below norm
#41. Roane County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.71 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 54.44 inches (#74 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.06 inches above norm
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#40. Rutherford County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.77 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 52.70 inches (#71 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.63 inches above norm
#39. Blount County
- Five-year precipitation average: 63.93 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.11 inches (#55 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.70 inches below norm
#38. Anderson County
- Five-year precipitation average: 64.37 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 56.16 inches (#82 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.04 inches above norm
#37. Perry County
- Five-year precipitation average: 64.65 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 49.40 inches (#46 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.70 inches below norm
#36. Pickett County
- Five-year precipitation average: 64.72 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.61 inches (#69 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.19 inches above norm
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#35. Hamilton County
- Five-year precipitation average: 64.88 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.68 inches (#64 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.93 inches below norm
#34. Campbell County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.04 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 56.37 inches (#88 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.69 inches above norm
#33. McNairy County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.25 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 50.82 inches (#57 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.54 inches below norm
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19 / 50#32. Giles County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.30 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.55 inches (#62 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.55 inches below norm
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20 / 50#30. Sevier County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.40 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.95 inches (#58 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.55 inches below norm
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22 / 50#29. Hardin County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.49 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 48.90 inches (#44 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.56 inches below norm
#28. Scott County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.59 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 55.40 inches (#77 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.74 inches above norm
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24 / 50#27. Bradley County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.63 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 52.71 inches (#66 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.27 inches above norm
#26. Lawrence County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.78 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 51.50 inches (#49 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.04 inches below norm
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#25. Morgan County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.84 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 56.27 inches (#77 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.20 inches above norm
#24. Marshall County
- Five-year precipitation average: 65.89 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 56.29 inches (#80 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.47 inches above norm
#23. Overton County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.02 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 55.56 inches (#72 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.94 inches above norm
#22. Meigs County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.34 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 54.18 inches (#66 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.52 inches above norm
#20. Cannon County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.54 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 57.92 inches (#81 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.83 inches above norm
#19. Fentress County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.56 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 55.82 inches (#77 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.75 inches above norm
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33 / 50#18. Lewis County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.75 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.41 inches (#62 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.00 inches above norm
#17. Putnam County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.84 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 55.52 inches (#66 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 0.96 inches above norm
#15. Wayne County
- Five-year precipitation average: 66.96 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 50.68 inches (#47 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.56 inches below norm
#14. Monroe County
- Five-year precipitation average: 67.08 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 52.25 inches (#44 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.45 inches below norm
#13. Warren County
- Five-year precipitation average: 67.92 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 57.65 inches (#76 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.91 inches above norm
#12. Rhea County
- Five-year precipitation average: 68.21 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 57.24 inches (#72 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.90 inches above norm
#11. Van Buren County
- Five-year precipitation average: 68.25 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 58.74 inches (#82 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.15 inches above norm
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#10. Polk County
- Five-year precipitation average: 68.51 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 53.19 inches (#55 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.46 inches below norm
#9. Coffee County
- Five-year precipitation average: 68.57 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 56.88 inches (#73 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 2.55 inches above norm
#8. Cumberland County
- Five-year precipitation average: 68.74 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 60.10 inches (#89 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 5.05 inches above norm
Maxine Livingston // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Bledsoe County
- Five-year precipitation average: 69.41 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 59.49 inches (#78 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.47 inches above norm
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46 / 50#5. Lincoln County
- Five-year precipitation average: 69.99 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 59.91 inches (#88 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 5.48 inches above norm
#4. Moore County
- Five-year precipitation average: 70.56 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 58.41 inches (#79 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.92 inches above norm
#3. Marion County
- Five-year precipitation average: 73.19 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 60.93 inches (#85 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.22 inches above norm
#2. Franklin County
- Five-year precipitation average: 73.76 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 60.89 inches (#91 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 6.40 inches above norm
#1. Grundy County
- Five-year precipitation average: 73.80 inches
- Precipitation over the past year: 61.83 inches (#87 rainiest year since 1895)
- Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 5.02 inches above norm
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