Gloomy days of January hit a record in the Twin Cities

Feeling like there's no escape from the gloomy days this January?

You're not imagining things. Weather watchers in the Twin Cities say that Jan. 20-25 has been the gloomiest stretch for that period since they began tracking solar radiation in 1963 at the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus observatory.

The blame for all this dreariness goes to the January thaw — higher-than-normal temperatures that are melting the snow on the ground and filling the air with moisture, creating fog, said Pete Boulay, climatologist at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

Add a bunch of cloudy days and a stagnant weather mass, and no wonder you want to climb under the quilt and nap. The lesson is be careful what you wish for.

"The colder it is, the more sun you would see," Boulay said.

The stretch between Jan. 20-25 was the third warmest for that period since 1939, Boulay said.

The moderate weather might have had some dancing in the street, but the fog may keep them from seeing anyone else.

As temperatures dip below freezing, the days get brighter, Boulay said.

At the very least, the fog lifts because the snow isn't melting, he said.

Still, most Twin Cities residents looked out their windows Thursday upon yet another dreary day.

Not Boulay. Looking into the sky, he said, "I can see a disc of the sun. The sky is pretty milky … but I see the sun filtering through a little. No, I don't think today is a gloomy day."

Even better is that the darkest part of the winter season is behind us, Boulay said.

But a change in weather mass is needed for those who actually want to see blue skies and sun, Boulay said.

"That won't happen until we get colder air from the north," he said. "Maybe next week. The forecast is mostly cloudy for the next seven days."

At least it's not painfully cold, he quickly added.

"I guess you have to be a glass-is-half-full kind of person in January," he said. "You take whatever weather you can get."

Mary Lynn Smith • 612-673-4788