Superlatives about the cold and snowy January are diminishing and the media look elsewhere for headline-grabbing stories as the quest for extremes has generally brought little joy for the journalists so far. This article looks at the top 10 coldest Januaries during the last 110 years in southwest London. Come the end of the month will January 2010 be among them? Number 10
January 1947 Mean Temperature 2.1 Celsius.
This month preceded a very cold and snowy February but the severe weather in January only commenced on the 22nd. However, there were a few days with sleet and snow early in the month. On the 16th, it was sunny all day and the temperature reached 11, but a week later bitterly cold air arrived and this persisted until the end of the month and beyond. On the 29th, after a minimum temperature below minus 9 , the high for the day was only minus 3. Snow accumulated, and by the end of the 31st over 15cm of snow was lying.
Number 9
January 1929Mean Temperature 1.9 Celsius.
The largely forgotten winter of 1929/30 produced a cold January followed by an even colder February and that was after a fairly cold December. January was a dry month, and although sleet or snow fell on several days, particularly during the first two weeks, it was often in the form of granular snow from leaden skies and barely covered the ground. The dull weather prevented many sharp frosts, but days were cold during the first fortnight. On the 6th the temperature only just reached zero.There was sunshine, but with frosty nights, during the third week, and early on the 17th the temperature fell below minus 4. There was a mild end to the month, and on the 30th the maximum almost reached 11.
Number 8
January 1941Mean Temperature 1.6 Celsius.
There were four very cold Januaries during the Second World War, and although this was the least severe, there were several very cold days during the first three weeks along with sharp frosts and some snow, although many cloudy nights helped to lessen the severity of the frosts. On the 2nd, the temperature failed to rise above minus 1, and the low on the night of the 15th/16th was minus 6. At the end of the third week, snow turned to rain and it became somewhat milder. However, there were no days during the month when the temperature rose above 8.
Number 7
January 1987Mean Temperature 1.3 Celsius.
This was the last very cold January, but although it features in the top ten, much of the month was fairly benign. On both the 1st and 4th, maximum temperatures exceeded 10. After a cold and foggy day on the 8th, the first snow arrived on the 10th. The period from the 11th to the 14th was extremely cold. After an overnight low near minus 10 on the 11th/12th, the temperature during the day failed to rise above minus 6 Powdery snow fell and drifted extensively in the fresh northeast wind. The maximum level depth was 16cm. It remained very cold until the afternoon of the 20th, but then snow steadily disappeared, helped on the 21st by continuous drizzle. Temperatures were only slightly below normal for the rest of the month, although the last three nights were frosty.
Number 6
January 1985Mean Temperature 1.3 Celsius.
Sleet or snow fell on fifteen days during this changeable January and, apart from on the 12th, snow lay on the ground continuously from the 6th to the 17th. Mostly the depth was only 1 or 2cm, but 8cm was measured early on the 6th. Apart from the last few days, which were mild, the month was rather cold or cold with two very cold snaps. On the 7th, the temperature only reached minus 2, and on the following night the minimum was near minus 8. The 16th and 17th were particularly cold with highs near minus 4 and overnight lows of minus 6 and minus 7 respectively.
Number 5
January 1942Mean Temperature 1.1 Celsius.
The main wintry weather occurred from the middle of the second week through to the beginning of the last week of the month. This included a very snowy period around the 19th/20th when over 15cm of snow was lying. The beginning and end of the month were relatively mild but severe frosts and very cold days predominated. Early on the 15th, the temperature dipped to minus 8, and over deep snow cover, the high on the 22nd was under minus 3.
Number 4
January 1945Mean Temperature 1.0 Celsius.
Sleet or snow fell fairly often in this cold and changeable month. However, precipitation was generally light and lying snow was of short duration. There was a brief spell of cold weather early in the month, but on the 18th the temperature reached 8. However, most of the remainder of January was very cold, and after a low near minus 7 early on the 26th, the high for the day was only minus 2.
Number 3
January 1979Mean Temperature 0.9 Celsius.
A beleagured Labour government facing a General Election in the Spring amid widespread discontent amongst trades unions and roads that remained ungritted. This was January 1979, a true winter month with plenty of snow, some thaws and many frosty nights. The 1st of the month remained sub zero after an overnight low of minus 6 and the early days of January stayed very cold. Milder Atlantic air flooded in at the end of the first week, and after a mild night, the temperature on the 8th reached 9. A cold northerly airflow developed during the second week but it was milder again around mid month. Sleet or snow fell on the 17th, and the rest of the month varied between very and rather cold with a mixture of rain, sleet and snow but also with a few frosty nights.
Number 2
January 1940Mean Temperature -0.4 Celsius.
There were only five air frost-free nights during this month, but even this January had some milder interludes. The latter part of the first week and the beginning of the second week had near normal tempeeratures, and on the 7th the high was close to 10. However, it became bitterly cold later in the second week, and the very cold weather persisted, apart from a two-day break during the last week, until the end of the month. There were several fairly sunny days but with severe overnight frosts. On the 20th, after a minimum of minus 9, the day-time temperature only reached minus 2. Snow was not a major feature of this January, but after freezing rain at the beginning of the last week, the month ended with 15cm of snow lying on the ground.
Number 1
January 1963Mean Temperature -1.3 Celsius.
This was a truly remarkable winter month. The Boxing Day snow (20-25cm)remained on the ground into the New Year and it was added to quite regularly throughout the month. There were only ten days when sleet or snow did not fall, although there were several days when light snow grains was the only form of precipitation. Frost occurred on all but six nights, but fresh east or northeast winds often prevented very low minima. After a high of only minus 3 on the 24th, the following night was clear and cold with a low near minus 10. It then became less cold for a couple of days, and on the the 26th a maximum of 6 was recorded. However, very cold weather returned for the last few days of the month.
This January in perspective.
At the time of writing (14th), the snow is melting steadily and, in this area, it has caused very little disruption with a maximum depth of only 6cm. This January is currently temperature-rated 3rd with only a remote chance of bettering the Januaries of 1940 and 1963. Forecast charts show generally less cold air, but with high pressure over Scandinavia often reluctant to give way, there may still be a chance of east winds returning with January 2010 retaining a place in the top ten. So the last superlative of the month may be 'the coldest January for nearly 50 years'; or 'the coldest January for over 30 years', or 'the coldest January for more than 20 years' but, if mild weather prevails for the rest of the month, it may only be the coldest January since 1997!
