Prolonged Chill Grips the Great White North as United States Experiences Warmest Christmas in History.

Northern Canada has been gripped by an intense and prolonged cold spell, with thermometers lingering in the minus 20 to minus 40 Celsius range for weeks. On Tuesday, Braeburn in the Yukon recorded -55.7C, marking its chilliest December reading since 1975.

Prolonged Freeze in the Deep Minus Forties

In addition, the locales of Mayo and Dawson suffered through sixteen nights in a row below -40C, with Mayo experiencing a low of -50.4C on Monday. The capital, Whitehorse, likewise saw 10 nights when temperatures dropped below -30C.

This Arctic air mass pushed further southward over the festive period. In Edmonton, the Christmas overnight low dipped under -28 degrees Celsius.

Boxing Day was expected to bring readings no higher than -20 Celsius through a wide swath, from Edmonton in the west to Quebec in the east.

Forecast to Persist Through Early January

The frigid conditions are predicted to linger through the start of January. Officials have warned that the Yukon could face electricity outages in the coming days, as the territory’s power grid comes under strain from peak power usage levels.

This extended freeze is the result of the Arctic vortex settling over Canada for much of December, allowing bitter Arctic air to spill south. Next week, the cold air mass is expected to retreat north allowing more temperate air from the Pacific to sweep across America and reach into portions of southern Canada.

Pronounced Disparity to American Heat

Conversely, sections of America recorded the hottest December 25th in their history as readings skyrocketed 15 to 30 degrees Celsius above normal. Across wide regions, the atmosphere was more akin to late spring than late December.

A number of states broke historical records for December 25th warmth. In Oklahoma, Oklahoma City hit 25C on Tuesday, surpassing the previous peak of 22C set in 1982. Cities including Austin and Dallas, in Texas, and Charlotte, North Carolina similarly saw thermometers rise past the 25C mark.

Atmospheric Ridge Fuels Warmth

Above-average warmth is expected to continue on December 26th and into the weekend, with atypical high temperatures expected to spread across the southeastern US in the coming days.

The warmth has been fuelled by a robust atmospheric ridge extending from the desert south-west towards the north and east, creating a heat-dome effect. This pattern establishes a broad area of high pressure across much of the continent, trapping warm air near the surface. Sinking atmospheric air undergoes compression and additional heating, enabling abnormally high temperatures to develop.