cheeky_monkey

-37c with a windchill of -44c just east of Calgary...some are saying we could be back to normal temps by Sunday with highs around -3c

No almost though..had a snow day yesterday..ie couldn't get to work..1st time it has ever happened to me whilst i have been in Canada..so shows how bad it was.

Just as footnote..my new Audi A4 quattro..what a beast of a car..even got me around when other bigger 4x4 were getting stuck..this morning

no i live in Calgary

Possibly just experienced one of the worst winter storms i have seen since i have lived in Canada...i am currently snowed in...roads are impassable out of my district just tried to go and grab a coffee..cars, buses, trucks abandoned or completely stuck..no work for me today..with the windchill it is below -30c to boot....brrrr

Bit of a tricky drive into work this morning....almost white out conditions with lots of snow falling with a strong winds temp around -12c..yet i did not see one snow plough or gritter on the road as i drove to work

Looking at the forecast they are now predicting highs of -27c and a low of -35c by Fri/Sat next week..in answer to your question if there is any wind even a very gentle breeze -30c does sting...like pins and needles hands become numb very quickly if exposed for a few minutes..i remember when i was in Edmonton in 2011 trying to get the lead out of my engine to plug my block heater in when it was -30c had to take my gloves off to do it...damn did my fingers and hands hurt after just a couple of minutes..not very pleasant.

Yep we could be dipping close to -30c by the middle of next week if it pans out like this forecast.

Hows about posting similar charts for rubbish winters for example the ice extent for 1988?

i notched 11c yesterday

yep looks like i will have to break out my fur lined parka..only makes an appearance when the temps are -20c and below

Looking at the models this morning..after this week when it warms up a bit...thereafter it looks like it will become brutally cold across much of Canada and the northern half of the USA..During the first part of December.

Interesting Chinook yesterday that never quite got across the whole of Calgary..as i left work the temp where i was was hovering around 0c..i drove east along Stoney Trail (Calgary ring road) as i hit the north east loop the temp suddenly dropped to -18c within a space of about 1 mile... as i swung back west again it rose back to 0c again within the space of 1 mile..as i reached home it was -1c that was at 6pm..when i put the bins out at 7pm (in my tshirt) it was brutally cold..checked the temp and it was -19c at my house..so looked on the computer at the temp profile across Southern Alberta and there was a distinct line that cut the city in two between much warmer temperatures to the west and much colder air to the east..quite something to witness.

Only got down to -23c here and that was about 10pm last night had risen to -15c by the time i went to work at 5.30 am..now its a balmy -1c.

Does it..it distinctly looks above average across North America

I find it more than comical that every year people compare previous years..and say its is like 1962 or 1978 and nowadays its just like 2009 or 2010..if nothing transpires in December be prepared for the its very similar to Jan 1947 quotes come mid Jan..or dont forget how cold March 2013 was as February draws to a close. No 2 years are ever remotely the same whether it be cold or mild..in fact i have never seen anyone chirp on about this month is very similar to Nov 1988 or 1974?

looks very accurate as to how things panned out in N.America at least

We only got a dusting yesterday.

Blizzard condition here and -18c right now..hopefully +11c and sunshine by Sunday....maybe be a taste of how winter will pan out here...cold one week warm the next?

was a tad fresh over the weekend....very snowy with almost white out conditions Saturday morning as the temp fell from -2c to -11c in the space of less than an hour..Sunday however was very sunny...but cold -13c touched briefly after lunch...and quickly dipped below -20c after sundown.

another very snowy saturday in Calgary that 4 weekends in a row now

no i live in Canada and get Russian like winters most years...not much fun TBH

where does 17 years come from?..i hope you are not hanging your hat on 97-98 which was a very strong El nino year thus was a very high baseline to other years around it.

Nice little flip flop in temps here...gone from high of -12c on Sunday to a high of +12c today..then looks like back to highs of -12c at the weekend.

Things should be looked at globally rather than cherry picking hot or cold spells in particular locations at particular times...how many record warm years globally have there been in the last 10 years for example and how many reocrd cold years have there been in the same time frame?..personally i dont know the answer but they may give you an idea of the state of the climate surely?