Warm trend continues until the weekend; snow expected Sunday

A mid-day bump in temperatures Tuesday left 25 Alberta communities with new record high temperatures for Jan. 30, including Calgary which hit 14.5 C.

The hot spot in Alberta Tuesday was Irvine, with a peak temperature of 17.2 C. The hot spot in Canada, Maple Creek, Sask. saw a high of 21.1 C, which is 26 degrees above average.

A large ridge of high pressure aloft, combined with a broad ridge at the surface is funnelling the unseasonably warm weather in to the prairie provinces from the southern United States, but this will start to break down after Friday.

A well-developed surface low pressure system situated in the eastern Pacific, is expected to track into B.C. pulling colder air in from the north.

An atmospheric river will continue to produce soaking rains for the West Coast and B.C. interior, amplifying the risk of overland flooding, pooling, rapid snowmelt and possible landslides until the end of the week.

January has been a month of extremes in Calgary, with daytime highs as much as 28 degrees below seasonal on Jan. 12, to daytime highs nearly 17 degrees above seasonal on Jan. 30.

Daily average temperatures will fluctuate with shifts in weather patterns, but to see a span of 45 degrees for the daily maximum temperature in just 18-days is highly unusual.

For perspective – if you compare the range of daily high temperatures across an entire year in Calgary they span from around -6 C in January to 25 C in July, covering a range of 31 degrees. The range between annual maximum and annual minimum temperatures covers around 41 degrees.

Both the daily highs and overnight lows in Alberta will remain well-above seasonal until the end of the week, however the accompanying freeze-thaw cycle could create some icy surfaces early in the day.

For the latest weather warnings from Environment and Climate Change Canada click here. Driving conditions from 511 Alberta can be found here, or here from Drive BC.