Salem, North Carolina Weather
Salem, North Carolina — live current conditions, hourly and 7-day forecasts, NWS alerts, radar and satellite imagery, tide predictions, marine conditions and a solunar fishing forecast, soil and crop conditions for Salem, Burke County.
Tides, marine forecast and fishing conditions near Salem. Tide source:
Full aviation weather for Salem is published on the Foothills Regional Airport (KMRN) page, 16 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 Salem 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 Salem: Hickory Regional Airport (KHKY) 28 km · Wilson's Airport (KE40) 31 km · Rutherford County Marchman Field (KFQD) 37 km · Avery County Morrison Field (K7A8) 38 km · Shelby-Cleveland County Regional Airport (KEHO) 50 km
Conditions reported at KMRN describe the airfield itself. Weather 16 km away can differ, particularly in terrain or near the coast. For conditions at Salem specifically, see the current conditions and forecast above.
Soil conditions, frost risk and crop weather for Salem.
About Salem, North Carolina
Salem lies cradled by the gentle, rolling hills of Burke County, a landscape etched with the subtle artistry of ancient mountains that have long since softened their edges. It lies 20.1 miles west of Hickory, NC (from Hickory, NC: bearing 263°T), and is situated 3.3 miles south-south-west of Morganton. The air here, particularly in the early morning, carries a crisp, clean scent of pine and damp earth, a testament to the verdant embrace of the Blue Ridge foothills. Sunlight, when it breaks through the often-present cloud cover, has a diffused, almost pearlescent quality, illuminating the patchwork of farms and woodlands that define this corner of North Carolina. The land itself feels solid and yielding, a place where the boundaries between wild nature and human cultivation blur into a harmonious, quiet existence. The roots of Salem run deep, entwined with the agricultural heritage of this region, where tobacco and other crops once formed the backbone of its economy. While farming remains a vital thread, the character of Salem has diversified, influenced by its proximity to larger centers and the evolving needs of its residents. Echoes of past endeavors can still be found in the sturdy, weathered barns and the unassuming storefronts that line its main thoroughfare, each holding a story of resilience and adaptation. The rhythm of life in Salem is one of steady progression, marked by the changing seasons and the quiet comings and goings of a community that values its enduring connections to the land and to each other.
Live animated radar for Salem 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 | Salem, Burke County, North Carolina |
| Coordinates | 35.69874°N, 81.697041°W |
| Timezone | Eastern Time (America/New_York) |
| ZIP Code(s) | 27320, 27101, 27030, 28655 |
| Area Code | 336, 828 |
| Page generated | September 2026 |
| Weather data | Open-Meteo (open-source), NOAA National Weather Service |
About This Salem, North Carolina Weather Page
This page provides live weather conditions and forecasts for Salem, North Carolina, 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 Salem includes coordinates 35.698740°N, 81.697041°W, situated in Burke County. ZIP code 27320, 27101, 27030, 28655. Telephone area code: 336, 828. Timezone: Eastern Time (America/New_York).
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.
