Despite one record-breaking warm day, January was a little cooler than normal for the Tucson area this year.
The average high of 64.4 degrees was almost two degrees less than the normal average high for the month, 66.5 degrees. The 80-degree high on Jan. 13, broke the previous record for the day of 78 degrees, which was originally set in 1928 but was reached most recently in 2018, according to a report by John Glueck, a senior meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Tucson.
In January 2022, the highest temperature was 77 degrees on Jan. 7, and the average high was 68.9. The lowest temperature reached last month was 27 degrees on Jan. 26. The average low was 38.8 degrees — two degrees lower than the normal average low.
Winter storms brought last month’s total precipitation to 1.76 inches, which is more than twice the January average of 0.84 inches.
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Jan. 16 had the most rain in one day. That’s when the Weather Service recorded 0.59 inches of rain, a record for the date.
Tucson saw valley rain and mountain snow over a three-day period starting Jan. 15 and then again on Jan. 23 and 24. In January 2022, only 0.28 of an inch of rain fell, with 0.23 of an inch from a single day on Jan. 1, according to the Weather Service.
No snow was reported in January last year.
Mount Lemmon has received 10 inches of snow since Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. The road leading up to the mountain has been closed to all travel, the Pima County Sheriff's Department announced Monday morning. Video courtesy of Southern Arizona Timelapses.
In total, last month was the wettest January since 2015 and the 16th wettest on record, the NWS reports. It was also the coolest January since 2013.
February’s outlook shows a chance that temperatures will be slightly below normal.
The normal monthly high for February is 69.2 degrees and the normal low is 43.2 degrees, according to NWS data. February’s rainfall is predicted to be below the average of 84 hundredths of an inch.
Photos: Snow on Mt. Lemmon and the Santa Catalina Mountains
Matteo and Daniel Melchor get some excitement as their sled heads off the beaten path and into the woods near the Butterfly Trailhead in the Santa Catalina Mountains, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023. The slopes in the area were full of dozens of sledders, snowmen makers and the occasional snowball fighters, taking advantage of the aftermath of a weekend storm.
On his way to his truck after work, Zach Kruger stops to get a photo of a snowman, built in the back of a pick-up and ready for the trip back to the valley from atop Mount Lemmon, Summerhaven, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Sightseers get out among the rocks to watch sunset from the Windy Point Vista on Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Sergio Gamino puts the final touches to a snow man built atop the family van after day in the snow high on Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Edgar Tona sends the snow flying as he narrowly avoids a stump while sledding on the slopes near the Butterfly Trailhead in the Santa Catalina Mountains on January 4.
A young sledder picks her way up a snowy slope near the Inspiration Rock picnic area atop Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023. Dozens were using the slope to sled, build snowmen and generally take in a rare snowfall.
The snow is relatively untouched near the chapel at Ski Valley atop Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
A sliver sun heats the wet bark on a tree creating a little steam on a chilly afternoon at the Palisades Visitor's Center, Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
A dainty snowman sits on a guard rail along the Catalina Highway in the upper reaches of Mount Lemmon, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
A small stream of snowmelt trickles off the rocks near the higher reaches of the Santa Catalinas along the Mount Lemmon Highway, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Hundreds of icicles cling to a cliff face over the Mount Lemmon Highway in the Santa Catalinas, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
A vehicle heads down the Mount Lemmon Highway, caught in a slice of sunlight just below Windy Point Vista in the Santa Catalinas, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
The recent snowfall covers a burn scar on the north slopes of the Santa Catalinas near Mount Bigelow, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
The snow covers a stand of young pines on the north slopes of the Santa Catalinas, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Sofia Quinones takes a break from the sledding to try her hand at making snowmen near the Inspiration Rock Picnic Area, Tucson, Ariz., January 4, 2023.
Johanna Eubank is a digital producer for the Arizona Daily Star and tucson.com. She has been with the Star in various capacities since 1991.
Johanna Eubank
Online producer
