Credit: Minnesota State Climatology Office.
The final 10 days of January 2024 were quite warm, but the last day of the month was warmest of them all. Indeed, January 31 broke numerous daily high temperature records and became one of the warmest January days on record in Minnesota.
At International Falls, the high temperature of 53 F on January 31st became the highest temperature on record for any January day. Previously, no January day had ever topped 50 F at that station.
In the Twin Cities and at St. Cloud, the high temperature was 55 F, record highs for the date at both stations. Rochester also broke a daily high temperature record, with 52 F. Duluth hit 48 F, just one degree shy of its daily record. Airport stations in western and southwestern Minnesota recorded temperatures in the upper 50s and low 60s. The highest temperatures in the state occurred in western and southwestern Minnesota (many recorded on February 1 because volunteer daily observers with the official National Weather Service Cooperative Network make morning readings), with 61 F at Marshall, and 58 F reported at Milan, Wells and Winnebago.
The warmth on the final day of January punctuated a warm spell that began in most areas on the 22nd or 23rd. For the final week of the month, daily mean temperatures averaged 18-25 degrees F above normal across the state.
Updated February 1, 2024
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