As spring approaches, ice gives way to water in Boulder Creek. Temperatures this winter (December through February) ran 1.2°F (0.67°C) below Boulder’s 20-year average, according to Matt Kelsch (COMET), who collects readings at the cooperative weather station on the NOAA/NIST campus. This was one of Boulder’s four coldest winters in the last 20 years, Matt says.

Nationally, according to NOAA, 2007–08 was the coldest winter since 2001–02, though it was slightly warmer than the century-long average. The globe’s land areas saw their coldest January in 26 years.