A quiet end to a warm January in Montreal

The Niagara region during the epic Blizzard of 1977. This week marks the 43rd anniversary of that storm, back when winter had bite. In stark contrast, Montreal is about to finish one of the warmest Januaries on record.

High pressure is cresting over southern Quebec on Thursday, with clear and seasonable weather expected for Montreal. January 2020 is just about done, and it was a warm one to say the least. The average temperature through January 29, was -5.5C (22.1F), well above the normal of -9.7C (14.5F). We have recorded 13 days above the freezing point, remarkable for Montreal in January, and nearly double the long-term average. Officially at Trudeau Airport, there were no overnight lows below -20C (-4F). The long-term average from 1981-2010 is 7.6 days.

Our weekend storm is no more. The low in question will travel well offshore, sparing southern Quebec. A decent storm is likely in Atlantic Canada and Newfoundland. A western system may bring a dusting of snow to Ontario and Quebec on Sunday. (AccuWeather.com)

As far as precipitation is concerned, snowfall was relatively normal, with 50 to 60cm falling across metro Montreal, the normal is 49.5cm. The snow was scattered in nature, with no real large snowstorms. Rainfall was well above the normal of 27.3mm, with 50.0mm falling. The record-breaking rainstorm of January 11 was responsible for 44mm of that total. The mild weather has stretched across most of eastern Canada and the US. The Great Lakes are nearly ice-free, with only 6.6% of the surface frozen. Lake Erie and Ontario are virtually ice-free, with less than 2% coverage. The St. Lawrence River has very little ice as well, and what there is, is thin and dangerous.

Looking ahead to February, more of the same can be expected to start the month at least. Temperatures will be above normal, with just a slight chance for some flurries Saturday and late Sunday. No major storms are on the horizon at this time. The coastal low we were anticipating may affect Montreal earlier in the week, will remain offshore, impacting Atlantic Canada.

As the sun begins to strengthen in February and the days get longer, winter begins the epic battle to hold off spring. There is still plenty of winter to go, with February and March historically producing our biggest storms in Montreal. There are indications that the February will eventually turn colder, but that was the same scenario we were looking at for January, and it never materialized. Let's see what the groundhog has to say this Sunday, he may have better luck than me!