(WTAQ-WLUK) — 77 degrees. That was the warmest temperature recorded in Wisconsin during this year’s meteorological winter, which ran from December through February.
That broke the last record set in 2017 by five degrees. Overall, the statewide average temperature was 28.3 degrees, which is two degrees warmer than the last record in 2001-2002.
It may not sound like a lot, but it certainly left us with far less snow and some very dry soil.
“The recent precipitation we had in March and beginning of April has definitely helped and it’s helped especially in the top soil,” said Dr. Steve Vavrus, the Wisconsin state climatologist with the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Vavrus and other colleagues wrote out the winter summary for the state. They mention an interesting term called “Lost Winter” referring to warmth extending through the entire winter season. Vavrus thinks the warmth could continue in the future.
“Clearly, there’s a long-term warming trend, and it’s warming in every season in Wisconsin and elsewhere in the world,” Vavrus said. “Winters in Wisconsin have warmed the most long-term since records began in the 1890s, even more than the other three seasons.”
He also said the timeframe for warm weather could possibly be expanding. “Typically we would think June, July, and August as being our summers. With time, we’re probably getting May and September to be more summerlike than they used to be.”
As far as severe weather is concerned, there is no direct correlation between a warmer winter and a more active severe weather season. However, it led to new records being set in February.
What we do notice is, if it’s warm enough, even in the winter, we can have severe weather. That tornado outbreak we had on Feb. 8 was the first recorded tornadoes in Wisconsin and the only reason that was possible is because our temperatures were much warmer that day than usual in southern Wisconsin.
But just because we had a record-breaking winter doesn’t mean we’ll have a record-breaking summer.
The eastern two-thirds of the state has a 33% to 40% chance of above average temperatures.
The precipitation outlook shows we have equal chances of being above or below normal for precipitation accumulation.
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