The January 2025 North American cold wave was an

extreme weather Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...

event that brought extremely cold temperatures to a majority of the

Lower 48 The contiguous United States, also known as the U.S. mainland, officially referred to as the conterminous United States, consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the District of Columbia of the United States in central North America. The ter ...

of the

continental United States The contiguous United States, also known as the U.S. mainland, officially referred to as the conterminous United States, consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the District of Columbia of the United States in central North America. The te ...

, as well as the countries of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

as well throughout most of January 2025. It was the coldest January in much of the continent, especially the U.S., in at least a decade, bringing temperatures as much as below average to a majority of the country. Originating from the southward migration of the

polar vortex A polar vortex, more formally a circumpolar vortex, is a large region of cold, rotating air; polar vortices encircle both of Earth's polar regions. Polar vortices also exist on other rotating, low-obliquity planetary bodies. The term polar vor ...

after an

arctic front The Arctic front is the semipermanent, semi-continuous weather front between the cold arctic air mass and the warmer air of the polar cell. It can also be defined as the southern boundary of the Arctic air mass. Mesoscale cyclones known as pola ...

passed through the continent in early January, the pattern persisted for much of the month, bringing a wide swath of wintry weather across the Lower 48 of the U.S., allowing snow and ice to accumulate in regions that do not see it much at all in the Deep South. Though similar in extent to a previous cold wave in 2021, it was not as record-breaking within the central United States, but freezing temperatures reached as far south as the

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South or the South Coast, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Tex ...

, breaking many temperature records there, especially in the state of

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. The cold weather is estimated to have caused at least US$500 million in damages, and at least 18 deaths directly or indirectly attributed to the cold or winter weather.

Background

Beginning on January 2, an arctic front began moving south from

, before meeting up with a significant blizzard that tracked through the eastern half of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

from January 4–6. Following its passage, temperatures were expected to plummet across much of the country. Meteorologists also warned of a weakening

polar jet stream Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents in the Earth's atmosphere. The main jet streams are located near the altitude of the tropopause and are westerly winds, flowing west to east around the globe. The northern hemisphere and th ...

in the aftermath, which could result in the

being disrupted enough for very cold air to spill as far south as the

Mississippi Valley The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

Temperatures

Canada

On January 3,

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

and

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina ( ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 Canadian census, ...

both recorded temperatures as low as . Temperatures across the region reached similar levels two weeks later on January 20, when temperatures dropped as low as , with wind chills of close to .

United States

In the wake of the first storm in early January, parts of

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

experienced wind chills ranging from to on January 6.

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

, as of January 15, had its 18th-coldest January on record as of that date with an average temperature of . Milwaukee, Minnesota reached a temperature of early on January 19, with

wind chill Wind chill (popularly wind chill factor) is the sensation of cold produced by the wind for a given ambient air temperature on exposed skin as the air motion accelerates the rate of heat transfer from the body to the surrounding atmosphere. Its va ...

s below . The town of

Rolla, North Dakota Rolla ( ) is a city in Rolette County, North Dakota, United States. It is the county seat of Rolette County. The population was 1,223 at the 2020 census. The city contains a small park and a small outdoor pool. History Rolla was laid out in 1 ...

reached a

of early on the morning of January 20. The city of

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

had its coldest January temperature since 1988 on January 21, reaching . On January 22,

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

set a new daily record low of , and

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality that is the county seat of and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The ...

set a new daily low of .

Vineland, New Jersey Vineland is a City (New Jersey), city and the most populous municipality in Cumberland County, New Jersey, Cumberland County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. Bridgeton, New Jersey, Bridgeton and Vineland are the two principal cities of the ...

saw a low of early on January 23, marking the coldest temperature there since 2015. Other regions within the state also reached their coldest temperature in many years, with most being the coldest since January 2018.

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about east of Houston (city ...

set an all time monthly record low of for January. New record low temperatures were set in

Jennings, Louisiana Jennings is a city in, and the parish seat of, Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana, United States, near Lake Charles. The population was 10,383 at the 2010 census, a small decline from the 2000 tabulation. Jennings is the principal city of the ...

New Roads New Roads (historically ) is a city in and the parish seat of Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, United States. The center of population of Louisiana was located in New Roads in 2000. The population was 4,831 at the 2010 census, down from 4,966 i ...

, Lafayette,

New Iberia New Iberia (; ) is the largest city in and the parish seat of Iberia Parish, Louisiana, Iberia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The city of New Iberia is located approximately southeast of Lafayette, Louisiana, Lafayette, and forms part of ...

at , , and respectively.

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

and Lake Charles also set a monthly all time record low of and for January respectively.

Impact

United States

Due to the freezing temperatures, U.S. president-elect

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

announced on January 17 that his second inauguration ceremony would be moved indoors as a result, and would take place in the

Capitol rotunda The United States Capitol building features a central rotunda below the Capitol dome. Built between 1818 and 1824, the rotunda has been described as the Capitol's "symbolic and physical heart". The rotunda is connected by corridors leading so ...

. This was the first time this occurred since the public

second inauguration of Ronald Reagan The second inauguration of Ronald Reagan as president of the United States was the 50th inauguration, marking the commencement of his second and final four-year term as president and of George H. W. Bush as vice president. A private swearing-in ...

on January 21, 1985. An 80-year old man was confirmed to have died on January 19 in Milwaukee, Minnesota after falling outside and likely succumbing to

hypothermia Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe ...

Canada

Extreme cold warnings were issued in much of the regions of Saskatchewan on and during the week of January 20, due to the bitterly cold temperatures. Additionally, school closures were prominent in

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

due to wintry weather and extreme cold as well on January 20.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:January 2025 North American cold wave 2024–25 North American winter January 2025 in the United States 2020s cold waves 2025 meteorology 2025 natural disasters Cold waves in Canada Cold waves in the United States January 2025 in Canada

Background

Temperatures

Canada

United States

Impact

United States

Canada

See also

References