GRAND FORKS — As of Sunday, the temperature in Grand Forks has not reached 40 degrees in 120 days, according to meteorologists at WDAY.
And since the coming days probably only will see high temperatures in teens and 20s, it doesn’t appear the streak will end anytime soon – although it is highly unlikely Grand Forks will break its all-time streak.
The last time Grand Forks saw temperatures rise above 40 was Nov. 26, when the high was 41, according to WDAY records. The record for consecutive days below 40 is 155, set in 1979. That year, it didn’t hit 40 degrees until April 13. In Fargo, the record is 152 days, also set in 1979.
Fargo has a longer current streak than Grand Forks. As of Sunday, March 26, the city to the south is on a 136-day streak, since it hasn’t hit 40 degrees in Fargo since Nov. 9, when it was 42.
Fargo’s streak is the second-longest on record for that city. As of Thursday, Grand Forks' streak is the city's ninth-longest, according to WDAY.
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Forecasts for Grand Forks show highs in the teens Monday and in the 20s through Friday, according to WDAY.
“It does not look likely we will hit 40 degrees through the end of March for Fargo or Grand Forks. To break the record, Fargo would need to go through April 12 without hitting 40 degrees,” WDAY meteorologist Dillon Vogt told the Herald. “For Grand Forks, we would need to stay below 40 degrees until May 1 to break the record, which is super unrealistic and will not happen.”
Last week’s snowfall brought Grand Forks’ total to 65.9 inches, which makes this winter the eighth snowiest winter on record, dating to 1892. Last year, Grand Forks had 77.5 inches, which was fourth all-time. The winter of 2018-19 was the third snowiest on record, with 80.3 inches.
Four of the last five winters in Grand Forks – including this winter – brought at least 65 inches of snow.
The last five years of snowfall are: 2018-19 (80.3 inches), 2019-20 (71.9 inches), 2020-21 (17.1 inches), 2021-22 (77.5 inches) and 2022-23 (65.9 inches).
