Following a week of unseasonably warm weather, Madison broke the record Wednesday for highest temperature ever tracked in the city during winter.
Temperatures registered by Dane County Regional Airport peaked at 68 F around 3 p.m. The temperature climbed several marks above the city’s previous record throughout the afternoon, officially breaking it after hitting 66 F around 1 p.m. The last winter weather record of 65 F was set Dec. 3, 2012.
Although the calendar winter doesn’t start until Dec. 21, the entire month of December is considered winter by weather analysts. The meteorological winter goes through the end of February.
Madison also saw record-setting temperatures, all hitting at least 62 F, in the five days leading up to Wednesday.
February 2017 beat the last record monthly high of 64 F, set in 2000. Until this year, Madison has not seen more than three days in February where the temperature surpassed 60 F, according to the National Weather Service.
The city’s daily temperature record for Feb. 22 was last set in 1984, after hitting 60 F.
Despite a week of spring-like weather, Madison hasn’t seen the last of cold and snow—temperatures are expected to drop Friday, possibly followed by snow rolling in over the weekend, according to local meteorologists.
