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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Astonishing warmth hits North Country in November

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 11/11/20

REGIONAL— This fall’s temperature rollercoaster hit the high point this past week as much of Minnesota, including the North Country, experienced the warmest six days of November weather …

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Astonishing warmth hits North Country in November

Posted

REGIONAL— This fall’s temperature rollercoaster hit the high point this past week as much of Minnesota, including the North Country, experienced the warmest six days of November weather in state history.
The extraordinary weather shattered previous daily records, including longstanding records at Duluth and International Falls, which peaked on Nov. 3 at 75 and 74 degrees respectively. Both of those temperatures beat the previous record for the warmest reading ever recorded in those cities in the month of November.
The two cities also set a new all-time monthly record for consecutive days with a high temperature of 70 or above, with three straight days of exceptional warmth.
The outbreak of summer-like heat was experienced throughout the state and ran far above normal temperatures for this time of year. The average high in the first week of November in Tower, for example, is 40 degrees, with an average low of 22. Some days earlier this month were as much as 30 degrees above normal in International Falls, including a day that averaged 32 degrees above normal on Nov. 8. The last time that the state experienced a greater departure from weather norms was in March of 2012, when the region experienced temperatures in the 70s. International Falls set a monthly high temperature record during that event of 78 degrees and experienced an overnight low of 60 degrees, which was warmer than its previous record high temperature for the date.
While the daytime temperatures were astonishing, State Climatologist Pete Boulay said the overnight warmth this month was even more remarkable, as most stations reported nighttime lows as mild as the mid-50s on two or three occasions, a full 15 degrees above the typical high temperature in the region.
The dramatic warmth melted away what had appeared to be an early start to winter this year after unseasonably cold weather in late October brought frequent snow along with ice cover to most area lakes.
Snow returned to the area early Wednesday this week as a fast moving, but intense low pressure system dumped six-to-eight inches of snow across the region. This snow looks more likely to stick around for the duration as the extended forecast is calling for more seasonable temperatures, with highs in the upper 20s to mid 30s and lows in the teens and 20s.
In Tower, the normal high for Nov. 13 is 37 degrees, and the normal low is 18.