Plainview is centered at the intersection of South Dakota Highway 34 and Meade County Highway 39T, locally known as Plainview Road. The community is roughly halfway between Rapid City and Pierre.
Plainview is located in a very rural part of the Great Plains, where only two roads traverse the entire town. The nearest other settlement is fellow unincorporated community Howes, South Dakota, and the closest large settlement is Sturgis. Air transport is also limited; the closest airport with commercial service is Rapid City Regional Airport at 71 miles away.[4][5]
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Plainview has a cold semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Plainview was 114 °F (45.6 °C) on July 16, 2006, while the coldest temperature recorded was −34 °F (−36.7 °C) on December 30, 1990.[6]
| Climate data for Plainview, South Dakota, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1974–present |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Year |
| Record high °F (°C) |
71
(22) |
74
(23) |
85
(29) |
97
(36) |
101
(38) |
110
(43) |
114
(46) |
111
(44) |
108
(42) |
97
(36) |
85
(29) |
72
(22) |
114
(46) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) |
31.4
(−0.3) |
35.3
(1.8) |
46.6
(8.1) |
57.8
(14.3) |
68.1
(20.1) |
78.5
(25.8) |
86.5
(30.3) |
85.9
(29.9) |
76.7
(24.8) |
60.2
(15.7) |
45.5
(7.5) |
33.7
(0.9) |
58.9
(14.9) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) |
19.3
(−7.1) |
22.7
(−5.2) |
33.1
(0.6) |
43.8
(6.6) |
54.6
(12.6) |
65.1
(18.4) |
72.1
(22.3) |
70.5
(21.4) |
61.0
(16.1) |
45.9
(7.7) |
32.3
(0.2) |
22.0
(−5.6) |
45.2
(7.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) |
7.2
(−13.8) |
10.0
(−12.2) |
19.4
(−7.0) |
29.7
(−1.3) |
41.1
(5.1) |
51.6
(10.9) |
57.6
(14.2) |
55.1
(12.8) |
45.2
(7.3) |
31.6
(−0.2) |
19.0
(−7.2) |
10.4
(−12.0) |
31.5
(−0.3) |
| Record low °F (°C) |
−28
(−33) |
−33
(−36) |
−26
(−32) |
−3
(−19) |
19
(−7) |
33
(1) |
35
(2) |
38
(3) |
22
(−6) |
−4
(−20) |
−18
(−28) |
−34
(−37) |
−34
(−37) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) |
0.33
(8.4) |
0.45
(11) |
0.91
(23) |
1.89
(48) |
3.19
(81) |
2.93
(74) |
2.44
(62) |
1.41
(36) |
1.15
(29) |
1.59
(40) |
0.44
(11) |
0.38
(9.7) |
17.11
(433.1) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) |
5.0
(13) |
5.1
(13) |
8.8
(22) |
8.1
(21) |
0.9
(2.3) |
0.0
(0.0) |
0.0
(0.0) |
0.0
(0.0) |
0.0
(0.0) |
3.4
(8.6) |
4.1
(10) |
7.1
(18) |
42.5
(107.9) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) |
3.9 |
3.7 |
5.1 |
7.3 |
9.4 |
9.7 |
7.0 |
5.1 |
4.3 |
4.8 |
3.2 |
3.3 |
66.8 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) |
3.0 |
2.7 |
3.2 |
2.0 |
0.1 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.8 |
2.1 |
2.7 |
16.6 |
| Source 1: NOAA[7] |
| Source 2: National Weather Service[6] |
