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Frigid Winter Ahead! We “Cold” You So

Caleb Weatherbee and the Farmers’ Almanac are not surprised at the frigid weather temperatures that have been experienced throughout the country.  The 2010 Farmers’ Almanac, which released its weather outlook back in August, forewarned of an “ICE COLD SANDWICH WINTER" with the worst of the cold being in the Nation's midsection, and not-as-frigid conditions along both the West and East Coasts.

At the moment, it appears that the frigid conditions over the Nation's Midsection are gradually shifting into the Southeast.  Meanwhile, parts of the Northern Plains will be seeing a bit of a warm-up (can we call this a "winterlude?") but not for long (get the forecasts here).

Remember Last year?
The thermometer dipped low last winter too. Here are a few frigid highlights from the winter of 2008-2009:

• Below Zero! A record -50F reading in northwestern Maine on January 16, 2009, broke Maine’s old record of 48 below zero set in 1925.

• January Arctic. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, saw -29F on January 15th, 2009, which broke the old all-time record of -28F set in 1974. In Waterloo, Iowa, the -34F on the 17th tied the all-time record set March 1, 1962.
  

• Frozen Produce. Cold temperatures invaded the Southeast last winter. Florida experienced frosts and freezes in January, February, and March.

• Coldest January Since 1994. In Minnesota, January temperatures were 4 to 8 degrees below historical averages. For many locations, January brought no thawing temperatures until the 31st, rare occurrence for most Minnesota communities.
  

• Record Snow. In December 2008, Bismarck, North Dakota, received 33.3 inches of snow. On January 15, Bismarck airport thermometers registered 44 below zero, the coldest ever for the date, and one degree shy of the all-time coldest reading. By the end of January, many North Dakota counties had 400 percent more snow on the ground than normal.
  

• 10th Coldest January! In Chicago, January 2009 entered the record books as the city's 10th coldest.

• And there was measurable snow (3.6 inches) in Las Vegas, Nevada, in December!

Be prepared for winter's worst. Check out our winter safety tips now.