The first month of 2018 was one for the record books. January 2018 was one of the warmest on record in Boise with an average temperature of 37 degrees – six degrees above normal. And the balmy weather is expected to persist.
Think back to the Snow-pocalypse of 2017: banks of snow, icy roads and a three-week stretch where the mercury never got above freezing. Now reflect on this January.
“It’s quite a stark difference, isn’t it,” says Elizabeth Padian, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boise.
On Tuesday, January 30, the temperature topped out at 59 degrees at the Boise Airport. With several days throughout the month warming to over 50 degrees, Padian says this was the sixth warmest January on record.
She says the unseasonably warm temperatures are set to continue into February. Projections from the Weather Service call for a high of 60 Monday, February 5, with daytime highs staying in that vicinity through the week.
According to Padian, last year’s bone chilling temperatures at this time were due to a persistent inversion. While the Treasure Valley was under a brief inversion in December, the perfect mix of conditions that kept us clutching our coats for weeks didn’t set up.
“Our average temperatures were mixing the atmosphere very well, and so we’re not getting that cold air locked at the surface like last year,” the meteorologist explains.
Padian says skiers and winter sports fans shouldn’t fret. Some snow could soon be coming to McCall and points north of Boise.
For more local news, follow the KBSX newsroom on Twitter @KBSX915
Copyright 2018 Boise State Public Radio