Grab those ice skates and head to the local rink. The Northland's string of warmer-than-normal days will come to a halt by week's end by the new year's first big blast of frigid Arctic air.
Temperatures in Duluth have been above normal every day since Dec. 8 and should stay that way through Thursday, an unusually balmy string of 34 days. And our heat wave hasn't been just a little warmer -- most average daily temperatures have ranged a staggering 14 to 25 degrees above normal.
The National Weather Service in Duluth said temperatures will begin crashing on Thursday, when lows will drop below zero every night for the next several days. By Monday, temperatures will struggle to get above zero for the daily high.
It's not unusual for the Northland to have its coldest temperatures of the year during the next 10 days of January. Average daily temperatures bottom out now through Jan. 18, with average highs at 17 above and average lows at 2 below zero. By Jan. 19, average daily temperatures begin a six-month increase through mid-July, when the cycle turns down again.
