Nelson, Arizona Weather
Nelson, Arizona — live current conditions, hourly and 7-day forecasts, NWS alerts, radar and satellite imagery, soil and crop conditions for Nelson, Pima County.
Full aviation weather for Nelson is published on the Marana Regional Airport (KAVQ) page, 6 km away. It carries the current METAR decoded into plain language — surface wind, visibility, cloud layers and ceiling, temperature and dewpoint, and altimeter setting — alongside the raw observation as transmitted. 6 airfields within reach of Nelson have their own pages, listed below.
The Terminal Aerodrome Forecast (TAF) is shown across its full validity period, with each change group broken out so you can see when conditions are expected to shift. Flight category is derived automatically — VFR, MVFR, IFR or LIFR — from reported ceiling and visibility, with runway details and field elevation alongside. Observations update roughly hourly and forecasts several times a day.
Other airports near Nelson: Pinal Airpark (KMZJ) 11 km · Ryan Field (KRYN) 33 km · Davis Monthan Air Force Base (KDMA) 47 km · Tucson International Airport (KTUS) 47 km · Coolidge Municipal Airport (KP08) 58 km
Conditions reported at KAVQ describe the airfield itself. Weather 6 km away can differ, particularly in terrain or near the coast. For conditions at Nelson specifically, see the current conditions and forecast above.
Soil conditions, frost risk and crop weather for Nelson.
About Nelson, Arizona
Nelson exists as a quiet punctuation mark on the Sonoran Desert landscape, a place where the sun bleeds across vast, ochre plains and the saguaros stand like stoic sentinels. It lies 2.6 miles west-south-west of Marana, AZ (from Marana, AZ: bearing 258°T), and is situated 5.9 miles north-north-west of Picture Rocks. The air here, even at midday, carries a dry, almost brittle quality, hinting at the ancient geological forces that shaped these rolling hills and washes. Sparse vegetation, resilient and tenacious, clings to the sandy soil—ocotillo with its thorny arms outstretched, creosote bushes releasing their distinctive, rain-kissed scent, and the occasional palo verde tree, its pale green trunk a soft counterpoint to the intense blue sky. The silence is profound, broken only by the whisper of the wind and the distant, almost imperceptible hum of insects. The history of Nelson is deeply entwined with the earth it inhabits, a story whispered in the remnants of old mining claims and the hardy spirit of its inhabitants. For decades, this region pulsed with the promise of mineral wealth, copper and silver luring prospectors and entrepreneurs to carve out a life from the unforgiving terrain. Though the boom times have long since faded, a sense of resilience persists, reflected in the small, enduring businesses that still cater to the needs of those who call Nelson home, and the occasional intrepid traveler seeking a glimpse of authentic desert life. The legacy of those early days is not just in the land, but in the very character of Nelson—a quiet fortitude, a deep connection to the stark beauty of its surroundings, and a profound understanding of the subtle, enduring power of the desert.
Live animated radar for Nelson and surroundings — RainViewer.
NOAA GOES-16 GEOCOLOR — live animated loop updated every 10 minutes. Shows cloud cover, storm systems and weather patterns across the continental US.
Source: NOAA/NESDIS GOES-East · Public domain · Auto-updates on page reload
| Location | Nelson, Pima County, Arizona |
| Coordinates | 32.42896°N, 111.26955°W |
| Timezone | Mountain Standard Time — no DST (America/Phoenix) |
| ZIP Code(s) | 86434, 85653 |
| Area Code | 928, 520 |
| Page generated | September 2026 |
| Weather data | Open-Meteo (open-source), NOAA National Weather Service |
About This Nelson, Arizona Weather Page
This page provides live weather conditions and forecasts for Nelson, Arizona, including current conditions, a 24-hour hourly forecast, 7-day outlook, NWS extended text forecast, precipitation radar and NOAA GOES-16 satellite imagery. Aviation weather — live METAR observations and TAF forecasts — is published separately on the pages for the nearest reporting airports, linked from the aviation section above. Additional sections may include tide predictions, wave height, wave direction and sea-surface temperature, a barometric pressure trend, and a solunar-based fishing forecast with a fishing-conditions rating for coastal localities, and soil temperature, crop weather and live USGS river gauge data for agricultural areas near a monitored waterway. All data updates automatically on every page visit.
Location data for Nelson includes coordinates 32.428960°N, 111.269550°W, situated in Pima County. ZIP code 86434, 85653. Telephone area code: 928, 520. Timezone: Mountain Standard Time — no DST (America/Phoenix).
Weather data is sourced from the NOAA National Weather Service (NWS) and the open-source Open-Meteo API. River and stream data is sourced from the USGS National Water Information System. Tide predictions are sourced from NOAA CO-OPS; marine and solunar data are modeled from Open-Meteo and public sunrise/moon calculations and should be treated as a general guide alongside on-the-water conditions. Radar is provided by RainViewer. Satellite imagery is sourced from NOAA/NESDIS GOES-East and is public domain.
