A brief reprieve from the intense cold in southern Alberta heading into 2022

UPDATE: I have precious little to add for updates. The link to the Weather Summaries page has fallen off, now. Check this link here, or see below for the December 27 new low temperature records.

All I've really had to do is tighten in the forecast - a single degree up or down, in most cases.

The Environment Canada forecast out to Saturday shows a little more optimistically than I do at this time - we're all blameless, though calling me out as a pessimist is fair! We'll wait to see what happens when it gets closer.

With our temperatures improving, somewhat (I use the word "improving" loosely), we can expect to see some of these Extreme Cold Warnings fall away by tomorrow. It'll still be unpleasant, but not "large-scale frostbite risk" unpleasant.

We’ve been calling it ripe in our household. Would love to hear your preferred term for it on Twitter, just to mix the language up a bit.

Regardless, after record-breaking cold temperatures pressed into the province over the weekend (and I mean it – here’s the Weather Summaries page, copied as plain text at the bottom, in case this disappears to roll into the next wave.

Today, we take a minor reprieve (?) from the cold stuff, if briefly; westerly wind above us will be responsible for that, but breaking through the layer of downright frigid temperatures will take a whole lot more than one short-wave. Periods of snow should be expected today – the kind requiring a snow-brush, and perhaps not the shovel.

Once that heads on, we’re back to northerly wind. If there’s reprieve from the extreme cold warnings that, as 7 a.m. Tuesday, continue blanketing much of the province, we’ll just go on ahead and hop back into those by this evening.

Because wind chill values will likely creep back toward -40 overnight, Calgary may remain under the warning for a while longer.

How much longer?

I’ve peeked out to the middle of next week at our upper air pattern. Model confidence is pretty darned high that the jet stream will remain through or near the central U.S. for that time.

A brief respite will arrive this weekend, through New Year’s Day; it’s a product of a Pacific low opening us to potential chinook conditions.

Again to model confidence, this is a middling approach; that is to say, there’s a shot at seeing temps near-seasonal for a day or two just beyond our five-day forecast — but since it’s beyond our five-day forecast, I’m not shoving my chips in on that just yet.

Thanks as always to the great and powerful Rolf for compiling this sort of data.

🥈With a noon windchill of -42.9, today is #Calgary's 2nd windchilliest Dec 27th since records began in 1953. #YycWx pic.twitter.com/6lEfPKIW81

— Calgary Weather Records🌤(@YYC_Weather) December 27, 2021

Your five-day forecast:

Tonight

Flurries, low -30 C

Wednesday

Sunny

Daytime high: -20 C

Evening: some cloud, low -24 C

Thursday

Partly cloudy

Daytime high: -17 C

Evening: clear, low -27 C

Friday

New Year's Eve - Mainly sunny

Daytime high: -18 C

Evening: mainly clear, low -20 C

Saturday

New Year's Day - Partly cloudy

Daytime high: -7 C

Evening: some cloud, flurries, low -8 C

Sunday

Mainly sunny

Daytime high: -3 C

Evening: some cloud, low -11 C

 

In weather pics today, thanks to Matthew for braving a chilly evening – great shot!

And a couple of sun dogs here from Paul in Conrich:

You can submit your photos here, email me here, or tweet them over!

And as promised, the records info:

Weather summary

for Alberta

issued by Environment Canada

at 11:38 a.m. MST Monday 27 December 2021.

Discussion.

A cold, arctic airmass has settled into the province setting several

temperature records on Boxing day and December 27. Temperatures will

remain below normal through the week.

The following areas set a daily minimum temperature record on

December 27, 2021.

 

Airdrie Area

New record of -40.6

Old record of -36.1 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1881

 

Banff Area

New record of -37.2

Old record of -34.4 set in 1934

Records in this area have been kept since 1881

 

Bow Valley (Provincial Park) Area

New record of -40.4

Old record of -35.6 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1928

 

Cardston Area

New record of -36.4

Old record of -31.1 set in 1934

Records in this area have been kept since 1918

 

Claresholm Area

New record of -36.8

Old record of -31.1 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1951

 

Coronation Area

New record of -36.4

Old record of -36.1 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1912

 

Drumheller Area

New record of -37.8

Old record of -35.0 set in 1996

Records in this area have been kept since 1923

 

Edmonton International Airport

New record of -41.6

Old record of -38.0 set in 1992

Records in this area have been kept since 1959

 

Elk Island (National Park) Area

New record of -40.0

Old record of -35.5 set in 1996

Records in this area have been kept since 1966

 

Grande Prairie Area

New record of -44.4

Old record of -43.1 set in 1984

Records in this area have been kept since 1922

 

Jasper Area

New record of -39.5

Old record of -36.7 set in 1996

Records in this area have been kept since 1916

 

Nordegg Area

New record of -40.7

Old record of -39.4 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1915

 

Pincher Creek Area

New record of -35.9

Old record of -33.9 set in 1968

Records in this area have been kept since 1893

 

Sundre Area

New record of 40.9

Old record of -36.2 set in 1996

Records in this area have been kept since 1993

 

Waterton Park Area

New record of -37.2

Old record of -27.1 set in 1996

Records in this area have been kept since 1976

 

Note: The day has not ended and some values could still be exceeded

before the end of the day.

 

The following areas set a daily minimum temperature record on

December 26, 2021

 

Bow Valley (Provincial Park) Area

New record of -38.5

Record of -33.7 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1928

 

Hendrickson Creek Area

New record of -42.5

Old record of -35.8 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1995

 

High River Area

New record of -33.7

Old record of -33.4 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1913

 

Highvale Area

New record of -32.6

Old record of -31.2 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1977

 

Red Earth Creek Area

New record of -37.5

Old record of -36.9 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1994

 

Waterton Park Area

New record of -34.2

Old record of -33.2 set in 2017

Records in this area have been kept since 1976

 

Note: the temperature records reported here have been derived from a

selection of historical stations in each geographic area that were

active during the period of record.

 

Please note that this summary may contain preliminary or unofficial

information and does not constitute a complete or final report.

 

End/PASPC