This may not be the prize every Canadian wishes for, but on Friday, November 8, the country’s first -30°C temperature of the season was awarded.
And the bone-chilling recipient is…Eureka, Nunavut!
Eureka actually hit -32.7°C on Friday morning.
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November is typically the month when winter weather begins to settle in across most of Canada, but it’s been a much milder start to the season for many, so far. This makes a -30 degree temperature even harder to comprehend, especially when some areas have been basking in record and historic November warmth.
But currently, low pressure in the Arctic Ocean west of Nunavut is helping to funnel in polar air, and a northerly wind direction. That in turn has resulted in these bitterly cold temperatures.
While it may seem far too soon to be talking such cold conditions, Eureka typically see its first -30°C during mid to end of October. The region hit Canada’s first -10°C as early as September 18 this year.
These frigid lows become much more typical for southern portions of the country during the winter months, as you certainly don’t often hear of places like Toronto, Ont. hitting -30°C throughout the month of November. In fact, major cities including Vancouver, Windsor, and Halifax, have never recorded a -30°C low at all, with Toronto only reaching it a handful of times in history.
SEE ALSO: What if Ontario’s November warmth was cold instead? Imagining 30 C flip
While mild temperatures will dominate for most deep into the month of November, we are closely watching signs that this pattern could break down during the second half of the month. If this occurs, we will see a transition to a more typical late-November pattern across Central and Eastern Canada, with the potential for a period of colder-than-normal temperatures before the end of the month.