...La Crosse WI Sub-Zero Temperature Streak Ends...
At 153 AM on February 1, the temperature at La Crosse Regional
Airport climbed to zero. This ended a 72 hour sub-zero streak
which began between 2 AM and 3 AM on January 29. During this
streak, the average temperature was -14.1 degrees and the
average wind chill was -32.3 degrees.
This was the longest stretch of sub-zero temperatures since a
143 hour stretch in 1996 (January 29 at 5 PM to February 4 at 4 PM).
The average temperature of that streak was -17.7 degrees and the
average wind chill was -35 degrees. This was the longest ever
recorded. Consecutive hour streaks go back to 1948.
This latest streak was the 11th longest stretch below zero since
1948. The table below contains the 10 longest stretch of sub-zero
temperatures.
Top Ten Longest Stretches of Sub-Zero Temperatures
in La Crosse WI Since 1948
Rank Time Length Start Date Start Time End Date End Time
---- ----------- ---------- ---------- -------- --------
1 5 Days 23 Hours Jan 29 1996 5 PM Feb 4 1996 4 PM
2 4 Days 12 Hours Dec 21 1893 10 PM Dec 26 1983 10 AM
3 4 Days 9 Hours Jan 17 1970 9 PM Jan 22 1970 6 AM
4 4 Days 2 Hours Dec 16 1983 6 PM Dec 20 1983 8 PM
5 3 Days 20 Hours Dec 19 1989 5 PM Dec 23 1989 1 PM
6 3 Days 15 Hours Jan 16 1994 11 PM Jan 20 1994 2 PM
7 3 Days 9 Hours Jan 30 1971 3 AM Feb 2 1971 12 PM
3 Days 9 Hours Jan 27 1966 3 AM Jan 30 1966 12 PM
9 3 Days 5 Hours Jan 4 1988 8 AM Jan 7 1988 1 PM
3 Days 5 Hours Jan 28 1951 5 AM Jan 31 1951 10 AM
The high temperatures on both January 30th and January 31st were both below zero. This
was the first time that there were consecutive days below zero since
January 29-30, 2004.
The low temperature was -20F or colder on 3 consecutive days
(January 29-31). This was the first time this has occurred
since 1996 (January 30 to February 4). There have only
been 9 streaks which were longer than this year.
There were 4 cold records during this sub-zero streak.
On January 30, there was a record low maximum of -12 degrees.
The previous record was -6 degrees in 1899.
On January 30, the average temperature was -19 degrees. This tied
1951 for the coldest average temperature on this date.
On January 31, there was a record low of -33 degrees. The previous
record was -30 degrees in 1994. This was the first record low to
be tied or broken in La Crosse since May 15 2016 (tied) and it was
the first record low to be broken since March 3, 2014.
On January 31, the average temperature was -17 degrees. The previous
coldest average temperature record was -15 degrees in 1985.
...Rochester MN Sub-Zero Temperature Streak Ends...
At 654 AM on February 1, the temperature at Rochester International
Airport climbed to zero. This ended a 79 hour sub-zero streak
which began between 10 PM and 11 PM on January 28. During this
streak, the average temperature was -16.2 degrees and the
average wind chill was -38.6 degrees.
This was the longest stretch of sub-zero temperatures since an
85 hour stretch in 2017-18 (December 29 at 954 PM to January 2
at 1054 AM). The average temperature of that streak was
-10.9 degrees and the average wind chill was -31.6 degrees.
The longest sub-zero temperature streak was a 162 hour streak from
January 29, 1996 at 5 AM to February 4, 1996 at 11 PM. The average
was -17.4F and the average wind chill was -38.4 degrees.
There were 3 consecutive days with a low temperature -27 degrees
or colder. This was tied for 3rd place with similar streaks in
1996 (February 1-3) and 1936 (January 22-24). The only 2 streaks
which were longer 4 day streaks in 1977 (January 9-12) and
1912 (January 5-8).
There was 1 cold record set during this sub-zero streak.
On January 30, the average temperature was -19 degrees. This
broke the coldest average temperature for this date. The previous
record was -11 in 1996.