Last month was the coldest October on record in Idaho, according to NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information. Records for statewide average temperatures date back to 1895.
The average temperature in Idaho for October 2019 was 36.7 degrees Fahrenheit. The mean October temperature between 1901 and 2019 in the state was 44.1 degrees Fahrenheit.
The National Weather Service offices in Pocatello and in Boise both shared lists of Idaho cities that broke their own records for coldest October temperatures. They include Jerome, Pocatello, Burley, Stanley, Blackfoot and Ketchum.
As more October temperature data comes in, we add 10 more cities to the already impressive list of coldest Octobers on record. Here are the 10 additional cities to have October 2019 go down as the coldest on record, and thanks to our observers for collecting data each day! #idwx pic.twitter.com/jjqGSRhi41
— NWS Pocatello (@NWSPocatello) November 7, 2019
Feel tricked by your Oct heating bill? Oct 2019 was the coldest on record across nearly all of SE Idaho. Many locations saw their first subzero temperatures in Oct along with the most nights below freezing on record. Pocatello had their 2nd snowiest October, and more! #idwx pic.twitter.com/WoTGXlte3H
— NWS Pocatello (@NWSPocatello) November 1, 2019
Other places in the Mountain West and Pacific Northwest saw record low temperatures, too.
Steve Parker with the National Weather Service in Boise said a jet stream in Alaska moving south caused the cold temperatures.
“It came back down over the Pacfic Northwest. And as it did that it was able to bring a lot of that cold air from Western Canada down over us," Parker said.
Parker said this weather pattern is typical, and is often responsible for cool swells felt in the region, but that this one was unexpectedly early in the season.
He said the October cold doesn't reveal much about the winter ahead, but he said it is surprising to see temperatures flip to above average so far this November.
Find reporter Rachel Cohen on Twitter @racheld_cohen
Copyright 2019 Boise State Public Radio
