Midwest Weekly Highlights - January 18-24, 2012

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Cooler Temperatures in Northwest

The third week of January brought cooler temperatures to the northwest half of the Midwest. Warmer than normal temperatures remained for the southeast. Departures ranged from 7°F above normal in southeast Kentucky to 6°F below normal in Wisconsin (Figure 1). Daily temperature records were limited to just a handful of scattered record highs and lows. Despite the lack of records, some very cold temperatures were reported in the upper Midwest on the mornings of the 19th through the 22nd. Many stations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Upper Michigan reported minimum temperatures of -15°F to -25°F along with very windy conditions.
 

Wide Range in Precipitation Totals

Precipitation for the week ranged from more than 2" in southeast Kentucky to nothing in southwest Missouri (Figure 2). A band of precipitation brought between 0.50" and 0.75", and 6" to 8" of snow, to northwest Iowa, about three to four times normal for that area (Figure 3). Precipitation totals more than doubled normal across extensive parts of the Midwest in contrast to Missouri which was well below normal. Daily precipitation records for the week were in triple digits with the 21st and 23rd recording the most. The highest snow totals for the week were downwind of the Great Lakes and from northern Iowa to the southern end of Lake Michigan (Figure 4). The latter area picked up more than three times its normal snowfall for the period (Figure 5). The spell of relatively dry weather for Minnesota led to an expansion of Moderate Drought in the US Drought Monitor for the period ending on January 24th (Figure 6). With the expansion across Minnesota, more than 95% of the state is now in drought.
 

More Severe Weather

The southern Midwest was again hit with severe thunderstorms. Most of the reports came on the 22nd in western Kentucky, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and the boot heel of Missouri (Figure 7). Two tornadoes in southwest Kentucky struck near midnight with each staying on the ground for multiple miles but with no reported injuries (Calloway and Todd Counties). Wind damage reports were in the majority with 68 reports spread across the four-state region. A few hail reports ranging from 1" in Jefferson County, Illinois and Stoddard County, Missouri to 2" in Calloway County, Kentucky were also logged. Minor flooding continued in western Indiana with few impacts (Figure 8).
 

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