Shell, Wyoming
The community is named for the abundance of fossil shells located in the area. Nearby exposed formations such as the Cloverly Formation and the Morrison Formation have yielded numerous fossils of dinosaurs and other animals. Located to the west of the town is the Red Gulch Dinosaur Tracksite, a rare collection of dinosaur tracks from the Jurassic period.
Shell is home to the Iowa State University geology field station.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, in 2010 the CDP has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.96 km), all land.
Shell is located at the base of the Big Horn Mountains, at the mouth of Shell Canyon. Nearby Shell Creek rises in the Big Horn Mountains and joins the Big Horn River just north of Greybull.
Climate
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Shell has a cold semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Shell was 106 °F (41 °C) on July 14, 2002, and June 14, 2021, while the coldest temperature recorded was −43 °F (−42 °C) on December 21, 1983.
| Climate data for Shell, Wyoming, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1972–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 61 (16) |
67 (19) |
78 (26) |
88 (31) |
93 (34) |
106 (41) |
106 (41) |
104 (40) |
98 (37) |
90 (32) |
78 (26) |
75 (24) |
106 (41) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 50.7 (10.4) |
54.4 (12.4) |
68.9 (20.5) |
78.7 (25.9) |
86.0 (30.0) |
94.5 (34.7) |
99.2 (37.3) |
97.4 (36.3) |
92.5 (33.6) |
81.3 (27.4) |
65.5 (18.6) |
55.1 (12.8) |
99.6 (37.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 32.7 (0.4) |
37.4 (3.0) |
49.9 (9.9) |
58.7 (14.8) |
68.7 (20.4) |
79.3 (26.3) |
89.1 (31.7) |
86.9 (30.5) |
75.8 (24.3) |
60.2 (15.7) |
45. (7) |
33.7 (0.9) |
59.8 (15.4) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 19.5 (−6.9) |
24.1 (−4.4) |
36.0 (2.2) |
44.0 (6.7) |
53.9 (12.2) |
63.2 (17.3) |
71.3 (21.8) |
68.9 (20.5) |
58.7 (14.8) |
44.9 (7.2) |
31.7 (−0.2) |
20.8 (−6.2) |
44.7 (7.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 6.4 (−14.2) |
10.8 (−11.8) |
22.2 (−5.4) |
29.3 (−1.5) |
39.1 (3.9) |
47.0 (8.3) |
53.5 (11.9) |
51.0 (10.6) |
41.7 (5.4) |
29.7 (−1.3) |
18.2 (−7.7) |
7.8 (−13.4) |
29.7 (−1.3) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −17.3 (−27.4) |
−8.5 (−22.5) |
1.8 (−16.8) |
17.1 (−8.3) |
26.2 (−3.2) |
35.8 (2.1) |
44.1 (6.7) |
40.5 (4.7) |
29.3 (−1.5) |
13.7 (−10.2) |
−2.5 (−19.2) |
−9.9 (−23.3) |
−19.5 (−28.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −36 (−38) |
−36 (−38) |
−23 (−31) |
−1 (−18) |
12 (−11) |
28 (−2) |
27 (−3) |
31 (−1) |
12 (−11) |
−7 (−22) |
−22 (−30) |
−43 (−42) |
−43 (−42) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.47 (12) |
0.50 (13) |
0.49 (12) |
1.05 (27) |
1.88 (48) |
1.35 (34) |
0.72 (18) |
0.46 (12) |
1.07 (27) |
0.99 (25) |
0.68 (17) |
0.44 (11) |
10.10 (257) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 7.3 (19) |
6.4 (16) |
2.7 (6.9) |
1.4 (3.6) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.9 (2.3) |
3.9 (9.9) |
5.6 (14) |
28.2 (71.7) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 4.8 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 6.3 | 9.5 | 7.4 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 63.3 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 4.0 | 3.5 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 3.0 | 15.3 |
| Source 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: National Weather Service | |||||||||||||
Education
Residents are in Big Horn County School District 3.
References
- ^ "2010 City Population and Housing Occupancy Status". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- ^ "Home". camp.ge-at.iastate.edu. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
- ^ "2010 Wyoming Place Names". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 11, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- ^ "NOAA Online Weather Data". National Weather Service. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
- ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Big Horn County, WY" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved October 5, 2024. - Text list
Municipalities and communities of Big Horn County, Wyoming, United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Towns |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
 | This article about a location in Wyoming is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |