2023 began with the snowiest winter on record in several locations, and ended with the warmest December in Duluth since 1950.
While we rejoice in the effects of snow on the ground, it's hard to remember that we started 2023 with a snow depth of 21 inches on New Year's Day.
Total January temperatures were 6.5 degrees above normal but there was just over 17 inches of snowfall.
Temperature-wise, we ended up being colder than usual by the time we got to March and April. This went unnoticed due to the record-breaking snowfall.
In addition to the snowiest winter on record, record daily snowfalls were recorded on February 23, March 11, and April 20.
With much of the snow melting, widespread flooding became a problem in late April. Many bodies of water from small streams to the Mississippi River overflowed.
RELATED: Major flooding in Aitkin
Then we went from one end to the other with a completely dry stretch this summer. Rainfall in May was 23% of normal.
Duluth went 17 consecutive days without measurable rain from May 19 to June 4.
Measurable rain fell on June 5, followed by another dry stretch, this time lasting 13 days. The last week of June saw enough rain to bring the monthly rainfall total to 94 percent of normal. Dry weather continued through the summer, with July precipitation at 35% and August at 45% of normal.
Drought conditions have been noteworthy this summer. On August 8th, drought conditions in northwest Wisconsin reached D-4. This was the first time Wisconsin experienced an exceptional drought since the U.S. drought monitor began in 1999.
RELATED: South Shore enters D-4 drought
Dry conditions elsewhere also had major impacts on the Northland as Canadian wildfires brought smoke to our region. Eventually, the smoke cleared and the rain finally fell.
September flash floods set two daily rainfall records with 2.77 inches of rain on September 5th and 3.02 inches on the 24th. These two flash floods helped make this September the second wettest for Duluth with 10.36 inches of rainfall. The month was also 4.7 degrees above normal.
While warmer than normal temperatures persisted through the remainder of the year, above normal precipitation did not occur.
Deer season started with no snow on the ground, and we only got 1.7 inches of snowfall in October, followed by 1.3 inches in November and then 4.8 inches in December.
This December was notable not only for being one of three times in Duluth's history that it did not have a white Christmas, but also for having rain. We set a daily precipitation record on Christmas Eve with 0.85 inches. December was also wetter than July and August combined, and the average temperature was 30.1 degrees closer to normal for April (39.5 degrees) than December (17.1 degrees).
Overall, 2023 ended 1.9 degrees above normal with 1.81 inches of precipitation above normal.
2022 Review: Weather Edition can be found at this link.
