Bone-chilling cold coming

A very frigid weather pattern will be dominating the western U.S. into the New Year. It’s very likely that we’ll have low temperatures in the single digits to below the zero mark across the region.

The last time Coeur d’Alene reported temperatures below zero was on March 4, 2019, with a low of minus 2 degrees. The coldest temperature since 2000 was minus 9 degrees on Nov. 24, 2010.

One of the longest stretches of very cold weather in recent years was from Dec. 13-23, 2008, when low temperatures were in the single digits to below zero. The coldest day during that period was on Dec. 16, with a low of minus 6 degrees.

With the expected frigid temperatures and winds, we’ll hear more about the “wind chill factor.” This is a reading that represents what the temperature “feels like” when wind is blowing on exposed skin.

As the wind blows on or over the skin’s surface, moisture evaporates, which leads to a cooling effect. It’s possible that wind chill temperatures could be as low as minus 10 to minus 20 degrees across the region this week.

According to the wind chill chart, which is available on many websites, a temperature of zero degrees Fahrenheit with a 15 mph wind results in a wind chill temperature of minus 19 degrees. At this temperature, frostbite can occur within 30 minutes.

If the winds were to increase to over 50 mph, a zero-degree temperature would result in a wind chill reading of minus 32 degrees. In these conditions, frostbite would likely occur within 10 minutes.

In extreme cases, like the ones from the recent Arctic outbreak in the northern U.S., an air temperature of minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit combined with winds of 35 mph would have a wind chill reading of minus 55 degrees. According to the chart, frostbite would likely occur within 5 minutes.

Also, if you have exposed pipes, I would strongly consider insulting them. Also, it may not be a bad idea to have a slow drip of water from faucets, especially the ones facing outdoors, to prevent freezing as the chances for uninsulated pipes to break go way up and they are not cheap to fix.

Many people were very happy to see a white Christmas across the Inland Northwest. There were about 5 inches on the ground at Cliff’s station and 4 inches at Spokane International Airport. The extreme northern U.S., the Rockies and the mountains of northern and central California had at least an inch of snow on the ground on Christmas Day.

More snow is coming into early January, but weather patterns may change to the warmer side, leading to some rain in the lower elevations by the middle of next month. However, it’s still looking good for an above-normal snowfall season as the cooler than normal sea-surface temperature event in the south-central Pacific Ocean, La Niña, continues to intensify. As I’ve mentioned in other columns, during La Niña winters, we often receive more snow than average.

Despite the expected bitterly cold temperatures, it doesn’t look like we’ll come close to the all-time record low temperature in Coeur d’Alene of minus 30 degrees, which was set back on Jan. 30, 1950. On that day, it was minus 37 degrees in Hayden Lake, minus 22 degrees at Kellogg and minus 19 degrees at Spokane International Airport.

The previous day, the airport dropped down to minus 24 degrees. Spokane’s coldest mornings were on Jan. 15 and 16 in 1888 with a low of minus 30 degrees. Kellogg’s coldest morning ever was minus 36 degrees on Dec. 30, 1968.

According to Cliff’s records, the second coldest morning on record in Coeur d’Alene was minus 29 degrees on Feb. 9, 1933. It was minus 35 degrees at Sandpoint on that date. It was also minus 29 degrees in Coeur d’Alene on Jan. 29, 1950, which tied for second.

The fourth-coldest morning was minus 7 degrees on Feb. 1, 1950, with minus 30 degrees at Sandpoint. More cold records fell in 1950 as it was minus 26 degrees on Jan. 31, the sixth-coldest morning in recorded history. On Dec. 30, 1968, it was also minus 26 degrees with minus 24 degrees on Feb. 10, 1953. On Feb. 2, 1950, the mercury went down to minus 23 degrees, the ninth coldest and the minus 22 degrees on Jan. 24, 1949 rounds up the top 10 coldest days in Coeur d’Alene’s history.

It’s shaping up to very cold at the start of 2022, but the coldest winter temperatures, from November through March, according to Cliff’s records, occurred in 1948-49 with readings averaging 6.4 degrees below normal. The late 1940s and early 1950s were one of the coldest periods in recorded history across the Inland Northwest.

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Contact Randy Mann at randy@longrangeweather.com.