Home / Prediction Markets / Science / Chengdu July 9 High Temp: Can 38°C Clear the Bar? Chengdu July 9 High Temp: Can 38°C Clear the Bar? ☆ Watch Paper Trade View on Polymarket → Share SR Sofia Renard Climate & Science Analyst Embed NEW Embed this market Full Compact Copy Published July 7, 2026 6 min read Lines Verdict NO at 73% implied probability DISTRIBUTED FIELD: Chengdu's July heat pattern supports upper-30s temperatures on July 9, but one-degree bracket precision fragments probability across ten outcomes. Market probability: 26%. 27% Market Probability 1h +2.0% 24h +0.0% Trend Weak (37/100) Volume $7.5K $7.6K in 24h Liquidity $58.8K Moderate depth Time Left 1 day Resolves Jul 9 8K Vol. Jul 9, 2026 1H 6H 1D 1W 1M ALL Select lines to display 39°C $453 Vol. 27% Yes 26.5¢ No 73.5¢ 38°C $986 Vol. 25% Yes 24.5¢ No 75.5¢ 37°C $1K Vol. 14% Yes 14¢ No 86¢ 40°C $232 Vol. 14% Yes 13.5¢ No 86.5¢ 36°C $1K Vol. 7% Yes 6.5¢ No 93.5¢ 41°C or higher $2K Vol. 6% Yes 5.9¢ No 94.1¢ Chengdu sits in the Sichuan Basin, a geography famous for trapping heat. July is the city’s hottest month, and July 9 falls squarely in peak summer. The market currently prices a 38°C high on that date at 26%. That number tells you traders see this outcome as possible but not dominant, with the field spread across ten discrete temperature brackets. The market question asks: what will be the highest temperature recorded in Chengdu on July 9, 2026? The 38°C outcome trades at $0.26 YES and $0.74 NO. Resolution closes at noon local time on July 9. Total volume across the contract stands at $1,879, an extremely thin book for a short-dated weather market. How the 38°C Contract Works This market resolves YES if official meteorological records confirm Chengdu’s daily maximum temperature reaches exactly 38°C on July 9, 2026. Resolution follows official weather station data. The contract does not resolve on forecasts or model output. It resolves on the measured number. YES at $0.26 pays if the official Chengdu high lands at exactly 38°C on July 9.NO at $0.74 pays if the official high lands at any other temperature bracket, from 31°C or below up through 41°C or higher. The NO side wins if Chengdu records anything other than 38°C. The city’s July averages run near 34°C to 35°C for daily highs in a typical year, but heat events regularly push readings into the upper 30s. A cooler-than-expected pattern or a reading that lands at 37°C or 39°C both defeat this contract. The brackets are narrow: one degree either way is enough. Sponsored Partner Momentum and Market Signals The momentum composite here is weak and slightly negative. The 1-hour price change registers minus one percent, and the trend score sits at 45.84, below the neutral midpoint. That combination signals mild selling pressure, though on a book this thin, a handful of trades can move the number. Total volume is $1,879. The 24-hour volume reads $1,923, which actually exceeds the cumulative total, suggesting most activity concentrated in the last day. Liquidity sits at $27,859, providing reasonable order-book depth for the volume level. When volume runs below $1 million, and this market is far below that threshold, a single large position can reprice the contract sharply. Here’s what the measurements are telling us: the market is pricing uncertainty across a ten-way split, not expressing strong conviction on any single bracket. Key Factors The 1-hour price change of minus one percent and a trend score of 45.84 point to mild downward drift with no clear catalyst yet.Total volume of $1,879 is extremely low. Price is highly sensitive to any new position or forecast update.Liquidity of $27,859 provides adequate depth relative to current volume, but that ratio can change fast in the two days before resolution.Chengdu’s Sichuan Basin geography amplifies heat events. A regional ridge of high pressure pushes readings above 38°C quickly.The 24-hour volume exceeds the 30-day cumulative, which means trading interest accelerated sharply as the resolution date approached. Lines Analysis: Chengdu Heat and the 38°C Window The case for 38°C landing on the dot is narrow but real. Chengdu’s July climate record shows multiple days per summer where the maximum sits in the 37°C to 39°C range. The basin amplification effect means that when a heat ridge sets up over Sichuan, the city regularly clears 37°C and occasionally touches 40°C or above. The 38°C bracket is not an outlier target. It sits in the most probable zone of outcomes for a hot July day. What defeats this contract is the precision requirement. The daily maximum must land at exactly 38°C, not 37.9°C rounded down, not 38.1°C pushing into the next bracket. Weather station data resolves to the nearest degree in most official records, but the resolution methodology matters here. A reading that rounds to 39°C hands the win to that bracket instead. The data doesn’t care about the politics of which bracket traders prefer. It resolves on the number. Signals to Monitor China Meteorological Administration forecast updates for Chengdu on July 8 and July 9 will directly reprice all temperature brackets.A strengthening subtropical high over the Sichuan Basin between now and July 9 pushes the center of probability toward 39°C or 40°C, away from 38°C.A weak trough or cloud cover entering the basin on July 8 pulls expected highs down toward 36°C or 37°C, also away from this bracket.The resolution methodology, specifically whether official records round or truncate, determines the effective boundary between adjacent brackets.Competing bracket prices, especially 37°C and 39°C, are the best real-time signals. If those brackets trade up, capital is migrating away from 38°C. Total volume of $1,879 puts this firmly in speculative-interest territory. The data favors no single bracket with high confidence. The ten-way split naturally fragments probability. The market is pricing uncertainty, not science, because meteorological precision at a one-degree resolution two days out is genuinely difficult to call. LINES VERDICT Distributed Field, Thin Book Chengdu’s July heat record supports a temperature somewhere in the upper 30s on July 9, but the one-degree precision required for any single bracket to resolve YES makes this a fragmented, uncertain market with no dominant outcome. What the market says: The 38°C outcome carries a 26% implied probability, reflecting reasonable but not dominant odds in a ten-way field. With resolution in under 48 hours, any forecast shift will move this price sharply given the thin volume. Key unknown: The China Meteorological Administration’s official July 9 forecast for Chengdu, and whether the actual recorded maximum rounds to 38°C or tips one degree in either direction, is the single fact that resolves this market. Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat does 26% probability mean for the 38°C outcome?It means traders collectively assign roughly a one-in-four chance that Chengdu's official July 9 high lands at exactly 38°C. Nine other temperature brackets split the remaining probability.How does the NO contract pay out here?NO pays if Chengdu's recorded July 9 maximum is anything other than 38°C. Any bracket from 31°C or below up through 41°C or higher resolves this contract NO.What data release would move this contract's price most?The China Meteorological Administration's official Chengdu forecast for July 9 is the primary driver. A forecast shift of one degree either way reprices the adjacent brackets significantly.When does this market resolve?Resolution closes at noon on July 9, 2026. The contract settles on the official recorded daily maximum temperature for Chengdu on that date.Is volume low enough to distort this market's price?Yes. Total volume is $1,879, far below $1 million. A single meaningful position can shift the YES price noticeably. Treat price moves here as noisy until volume increases.How is the Smart Money Index calculated?We aggregate the live positions of the top 50 Polymarket whales (ranked by 30-day tracked volume) into one composite reading per market. It refreshes every hour. The percentage shows how many of those whales hold YES versus NO; the net dollar position shows the cohort's directional exposure in dollars.What is a convergence signal?A convergence event fires when three or more tracked wallets buy the same outcome on the same market within a four-hour window. We surface these in the activity feed and the VIP digest.Is Lines a market operator?No. Lines is an editorial and data product. We do not operate prediction markets, custody funds, or accept trades. All trade flows deep-link to Polymarket via our affiliate code. Probabilities shown are market-implied and not predictions or recommendations. What Could Shift These Probabilities? Heat Ridge Locks In 38°C A strong subtropical high pressure system settles over the Sichuan Basin on July 8 and produces a classic basin heat day. Temperatures peak in the upper 30s, and official records land squarely at 38°C. Forecast models converge on this bracket in the final 24 hours, drawing capital from adjacent outcomes and pushing the YES price above 35%. Adjacent Brackets Absorb Probability Forecast models narrow toward 37°C or 39°C as July 9 approaches, pulling traders out of the 38°C bracket. Even if Chengdu records a hot day, the one-degree precision requirement fails this contract. The YES price drifts toward 15% as money migrates to neighboring temperature outcomes. Cooling Pattern Collapses Upper Brackets A weak frontal system or unexpected cloud cover limits Chengdu's July 9 maximum to the 36°C to 38°C range. Upper brackets like 39°C and 40°C deflate. The 38°C bracket becomes the highest plausible outcome and absorbs disproportionate probability, lifting YES toward 30% or above. Resolution Methodology Question Official Chengdu station data records a temperature that sits ambiguously between two brackets, for example 38.5°C that could round to either 38°C or 39°C depending on the methodology. A resolution dispute or clarification from the market operator could temporarily halt settlement and reprice multiple brackets simultaneously. Key macro factor: The 2026 summer heat pattern across eastern Asia, influenced by La Nina transitioning conditions and the western Pacific subtropical high, is the dominant climate factor setting the baseline probability distribution across all Chengdu temperature brackets. Market Timeline 4:03 AM Market Created 4:03 AM Market Opened Thursday, Jul 9 Market Resolution Place paper trade No real money × Highest temperature in Chengdu on July 9? Outcome 39°C · 27% 38°C · 25% 37°C · 14% 40°C · 14% 36°C · 7% 41°C or higher · 6% 35°C · 6% 34°C · 2% 32°C · 0% 33°C · 0% 31°C or below · 0% YES $0.27 NO $0.74 Stake (USD) $100 $500 $1,000 $5,000 Pick a market to see how many shares you would hold. 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