Though Challenging, It Was Not a Historic January Cold Period:
January 18-21 of this past week certainly qualified as a Cold Wave, as statewide average temperatures ranged from -2°F to -13°F across the state. That is about 16°F to 20°F below normal for this time of year. Of further note, Wind Chill conditions ranged from -35°F to -55°F across much of the state on both January 20 and January 21 making it risky to be outside for more than 10-15 minutes.
The Cold Wave did not bring any new record minimum temperatures to Minnesota, but it did bring some record cold daily maximum temperatures to several climate stations on the 19th and 20th.. Some of these included:
Preston and Winona Dam -4°F
Red Wing Dam -6°F
Hibbing -10°F
Collegeville, Litchfield, Elk River, Madison, and Brimson -11°F
Brainerd, Floodwood, and Cloquet -12°F
Gunflint Lake -13°F
Thorhult, Leech Lake, and Wheaton -15°F
Pokegama Dam and Tower -16°F
Park Rapids, Cass Lake, and International Falls -18°F
Red Lake Falls -20°F
Although these seem like very cold daytime high temperatures, I would remind readers and listeners that there are over 80 Minnesota climate stations that have historically reported daytime high temperatures of -24°F or colder, and more than 15 stations have reported daytime highs of -30°F or colder historically.
Over the January 18-21 period the National Weather Service had to issue a number of Cold Weather Advisories and Extreme Cold Warnings. Many areas reported Wind Chill Readings from -35°F to -45°F, and some areas reported WC of -50°F or colder. Some examples:
-55°F at Flag Island (Northwest Angle)
-54°F at Mahnomen
-52°F at Fosston and Grand Rapids
-51°F at Crookston
These are exceptionally dangerous Wind Chill Values and some of the lowest since late January of 2019 for Minnesota.
Weekly Weather Potpourri:
From a reading of the National Weather Service Forecast Office summaries across the Deep South this week, it appears that many areas recorded both record low temperatures and record snowfall amounts over January 21-22. Some of the record snowfalls included:
Texas: 5.7” at Beaumont, 3.0 inches at Dickinson, and 1.0” at Galveston
Louisiana: 11.5” at Chalmette, 9.0” at Lafayette, and 6.5” at Slidell
Mississippi: 7.0” at Gauther, 5.3” at Biloxi, 4.2: at Gulfport
Alabama: 9.0” at Summerdale, 7.8” at Mobile, and 5.5” at Dothan
Georgia: 7.5” at Albany, 5.0” at Hawkinsville, and 1.7” at Augusta
Florida: 9.4” at Pensacola, 7.3” at Crestview, and 4.5” at Panama City
Fortunately, with widespread temperatures in the 40s F most of the snow was melting on Thursday, January 23rd.
A new article this week published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science documents an abrupt change in thousands of Arctic lakes in West Greenland as a result of an episode of climate extremes (both abnormally warm temperatures and abundant rainfall) during the year 2022. The lakes changed from “blue” to “brown” almost immediately altering their physical, chemical, and biological features. With the changes in plankton and algal composition these lakes changed from being a carbon sink in the summer to being a carbon dioxide emitter in the summer. Such abrupt changes may have serious implications for climate change
MPR listener question:
We were wondering about how the longevity of subzero hours earlier this week (said to be 66 hours) compares to other historical Cold Spells here in the Twin Cities?
Answer:
The DNR State Climatology Office did a study of this very question. They found that there have been 28 times when the temperature in the Twin Cities remained at or below 0°F for 96 hours (4 consecutive days) or longer since 1873. The most recent of these spells was 116 hours which ended on February 16 of 2021. So, to rank among the top 30 episodes in Twin Cities history, the cold spell earlier this week would have had to last another day and a half.
BTW the record longest cold spell with temperatures of 0°F or colder in the Twin Cities is 186 hours (7.75 days) back in January of 1912.
Twin Cities Almanac for January 24th:
The average MSP high temperature for this date is 23 degrees F (plus or minus 15 degrees F standard deviation), while the average low is 8 degrees F (plus or minus 15 degrees F standard deviation).
MSP Local Records for January 24th:
MSP records for this date: highest daily maximum temperature of 57 degrees F in 1981; lowest daily maximum temperature of -16 degrees F in 1904; lowest daily minimum temperature of -33 degrees F in 1904; highest daily minimum temperature of 33 degrees F in 1919, and record precipitation of 1.21 inches in 1967. Record snowfall is 6.0 inches in 1972.
Average dew point for January 24th is 7°F; the maximum dew point on this date is 36°F in 1944 and the minimum dew point on this date is -31 degrees F in 1961.
All-time state records for January 24th:
The state record high temperature for this date is 69 degrees F at Montevideo (Lac Qui Parle County) in 1981. The state record low temperature for this date is -57 degrees F at Pokegama Dam (Itasca Louis County) in 1904. The state record precipitation for this date is 2.40 inches at Littlefork (Koochiching County) in 1950. The statewide snowfall record for this date is 14.0 inches at Blue Earth (Faribault County) in 1982.
Past Weather:
Arctic high pressure had a grip on Minnesota over January 24 of 1904. It brought record-setting low temperatures from -20 to -48°F across nearly all of the Minnesota landscape. After a morning low of -57°F at Pokegama Dam, the temperature was barely able to climb to -23°F for an afternoon high.
Record warm temperatures prevailed over southern and western portions of Minnesota on January 24 of 1981. Where there was no snow cover afternoon temperatures climbed into the 50s and 60s F. Over 20 counties reported afternoon temperatures of 60°F or greater.
A major winter storm crossed the state over January 23-24 of 1982 bring heavy snowfall to many areas. Twenty-five counties reported snowfall of a foot or more. It was the second major winter storm within a week. Many parts of the state reported over 40 inches of snow that month, and snow depths were over 30 inches in many parts of Minnesota by the end of the month.
Outlook:
Milder over the weekend with plenty of sunshine most places. Temperatures will continue to warm into much of next week, rising well above normal for this time of year. There will be a slight chance for snow across the far northern areas of the state from Sunday night through Tuesday, dry elsewhere.
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