Spring 2013 Among Coldest on Record for Some Locations

The preliminary numbers are in, and if you thought this Spring* was on the cool side, you were right!

Despite a few warmer days in May, including record-setting warmth at Sioux City, the average mean temperature for the 2013 Meteorological Spring* was among the Top 10 coldest on record in Sioux Falls (8th), Huron (8th), and Mitchell (7th). Sioux City just missed out, coming in at 12th place. A table showing the Top 10 coldest average mean temperatures during the Meteorological Spring season is included as an embedded image below.

Spring* 2013 was also the coldest on record for some of our cooperative observation sites where records began in the late 1800's to early 1900's. A table of these locations is also included below.

Image of tables showing Top 10 coldest average mean temperatures for meteorological Spring at Sioux Falls, Sioux City, Huron, and Mitchell.

Image of table showing locations where the average mean temperature in the Spring of 2013 was the coldest on record. These locations are Flandreau, Wessington Springs, and White Lake in SD; Marshall and Windom in MN; Rock Rapids and Sheldon in IA; and Wakefield, NE.

When broken down to look at the average max temperature vs. the average min temperature, it becomes clear that for Sioux Falls and Mitchell, the coolness of the Spring* was largely driven by cold max temperatures, which ranked 3rd and 5th coldest, respectively. The average min temperatures at these locations did not even make the Top 15. For Sioux City, it was just the opposite, where the average min temperature was the 10th coldest, but the average max was barely in the Top 20. Huron was the most "balanced" of the four locations, with both the average max and average min temperatures ranking in the Top 10 (8th and 9th respectively).

Image of tables showing Top 10 coldest average max temperatures for meteorological Spring at Sioux Falls, Sioux City, Huron, and Mitchell.

Image of tables showing Top 10 coldest average min temperatures for meteorological Spring at Sioux Falls, Sioux City, Huron, and Mitchell.

A similar breakdown is available below for the cooperative observation sites, although in this case, we display only those sites where the average max or average min were the coldest on record. Flandreau, SD; White Lake, SD; and Windom, MN were the only sites "lucky" enough to make both lists.

Image of table showing locations where the average max temperature in the Spring of 2013 was the coldest on record. These locations are Flandreau, Wessington Springs, and White Lake in SD; Marshall and Windom in MN; and Le Mars, IA.

Image of table showing locations where the average min temperature in the Spring of 2013 was the coldest on record. These locations are Flandreau and White Lake in SD; Windom, MN; and Wakefield, NE.

* Meteorological Spring consists of the months of March/April/May.