TOLEDO, Ohio — This week's Climate Friday will recap Toledo's warmest December on record and a historically mild year, looking ahead to early 2024. Meteorologist John Burchfield will break down the data from an exceptionally mild December and analyze the link between climate change and this warm start to the winter season.
December 2023 will go down in the record books as the warmest on record in Toledo history. At nearly nine degrees above average, December featured the warmest weather in 150 years of weather data in the Toledo area. Daytime high temperatures averaged 48 degrees compared to the normal high of 39. The top four warmest Decembers on record are as follows: 2023, 1889, 2015, and 1877.
Each one of these years brought mean temperatures over 40 degrees. In terms of high temperatures, December, 2023 ranks as the third warmest on record, falling behind 1889 and 2015. Most climatological data looks at mean temperature, which factors in daytime highs and overnight lows, better representing the overall heat or chill of the day. So December, 2023 will go down as the warmest on record. This will likely come as no surprise, as December felt more like an extension of fall than start of winter.
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Further analysis of December data shows just how unusual the mild weather pattern was. With just 10 nights dipping down below freezing, December didn't bring a single day with afternoon highs below 32 degrees. Normally, nine to ten December days top out below the freezing mark. This year, not a single day fell shy of 32 degrees.
In a typical December, 24 nights dip down below freezing. With just 10, December, 2023 failed to deliver any frigid nights. The coldest temperature of the entire month was 23 degrees on Dec. 13 and 14. The warmest temperature of 65 degrees on December 9 set an all-time record at Toledo Express Airport. Also noteworthy was the holiday warmth that brought 59 degree temperature readings on Christmas Day and December 26. The week of Christmas into New Year's felt more like spring than winter, contributing to an overall record-setting month.
Not only will December, 2023 go down as the warmest on record, but will also make history as the least snowy. With just a trace of snowfall, 2023 joins the ranks of 2015, 2014, and 1931 as the least snowy on record. Only these four years have failed to deliver any measurable December snow.
With three of these in the past decade, the link between climate change and lack of early season snow is apparent. This entire season so far has failed to bring even a single inch of snow. With just 0.9 inches of accumulation, the 2023-2024 season has started off as the second least snowy on record. Topping the list is 1918-1919 with just a half an inch of accumulation through today's date.
Several other seasons have started off with hardly any snowfall, including 1965-1966 (1.0 inches), 1939-1940 (1.3 inches), and 1997-1998 (1.5 inches). The lack of December snowfall, while partially due to a quiet jet stream pattern and El Niño winter, fits the overall trend associated with climate change. December weather will likely grow even warmer and less snowy in the future.
December brought unseasonable warmth not only to northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan, but much of the globe as a whole. Nationwide, December delivered 3,824 record high temperatures. 21 of these occurred in the Buckeye State with one in Toledo (65 degrees on Dec. 9). Much of North America felt similar warmth during the month of December, including Canada which experienced 447 record highs.
December capped off Earth's hottest year on record and the second warmest in the Toledo area. With an average temperature of 54.1 degrees locally, 2023 fell just shy of 2021 as the hottest year by a mere tenth of a degree.
Other recent years also sit high atop the list of warmest on record. 2023 was the eighth warmest on record, 2020 5th, and 2019 14th. Each one of these recent years is 1-3 degrees above the average annual temperature in Toledo of 51 degrees. Climate change is linked with these rising temperatures.
As we kick off 2024, the weather pattern will turn sharply cooler and more active with several storm systems on the horizon. Stay tuned to the WTOL 11 Weather Team for the latest 10-day forecast and look ahead to the rest of winter as the pattern turns more active. Meteorologist John Burchfield will have the latest Climate Friday Newsletter every week this year.
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