National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office

Story issued 115 pm CST Tue Jan 13 2009, updated 415 pm, 3rd update 1015 am CST Wed Jan 14 2009, 4th update 942 pm

Bitter cold will continue for the rest of the work week.  The coldest weather appears to be tonight through Friday morning, when temperatures will likely remain below zero continuously for 36-48 hours.  Using our current forecasts, it appears that this will be the coldest air temperatures at Milwaukee and Madison in the past 9-13 years.  Forecast high and low temperatures are similar or slightly lower than those observed during the frigid weather in early February 2007.

Forecast highs and lows for Thursday/Thursday night:

Milwaukee      1  (would be coldest since -1 on Feb 4 2007)

             and -14 (would be coldest since -15 on Jan 5 1999)

(However, readings at Waukesha, farther away from Lake Michigan, are forecast to be much colder with a high of -5 and a low of -21). 

Coldest observed temperatures in recent past:

                     High                             Low

5 years   -1  Feb 4 2007             -12   Feb 18 2006

10 years  -1  Feb 4 2007             -15  Jan 5 1999

15 years  -12 Jan 18 1994           -26  Feb 3 1996

 

Milwaukee     Record Low                     Record Low

              Minimum Temperature      Maximum Temperature

Tue Jan 13      -18 in 1929                    -7 in 1929

Wed Jan 14     -19 in 1881                    -2 in 1893

Thu Jan 15      -24 in 1963                  -13 in 1972

Fri Jan 16       -23 in 1982                   -5 in 1977

 Milwaukee All time record low -26 on January 17th, 1982, and Feb 3rd, 1996

Milwaukee All time record low maximum -13 on December 28th, 1880 and January 15th, 1972 

  

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Forecast highs and lows for Thursday/Thursday night:

 

Madison        -3 (would be coldest since -3 on Feb 4, 2007)

             and -21 (would be coldest since -21 on Dec 25 2000)

 

 

Coldest observed temperatures in recent past:

                     High                             Low

5 years   -3  Feb 4 2007             -17   Feb 18 2006

10 years  -3  Feb 4 2007             -21  Dec 25 2000

15 years  -14 Feb 2 1996             -29  Feb 3 1996

 

Madison     Record Low                         Record Low

         Minimum Temperature        Maximum Temperature

 Tue Jan 13     -22 in 1916                     -8 in 1929

Wed Jan 14    -26 in 1963                    -5 in 1963

Thu Jan 15      -30 in 1963                   -13 in 1972

Fri Jan 16       -28 in 1979                    -5 in 1977

Madison All time record low -37 on January 30th, 1951

Madison All time record low maximum -15 on Feb 9th, 1899

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Jeff Craven, Science and Operations Officer

NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan WI

w-mkx.webmaster@noaa.gov

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