February much colder than average in Calgary, says Environment Canada

The first three weeks of February have been so relentlessly cold that Calgarians might be wondering if someone accidentally put January on repeat.

The average temperature in Calgary so far this month is 13.5 C, says Environment Canada meteorologist Dan Kulak.

• If you think winter has been particularly harsh this year you're right

The historical average for February is 5.4 C in Calgary.

"It's just been a cool pattern across the Prairies."

Kulak said the cold has been pretty stubbornly stuck over Calgary, apart from a couple of memorable respites like on Feb. 12 when the temperature swung 32 degrees from 29 C in the morning to a high of 2.9 C.

And then there's all that snow. So far this month, Calgary has had 43 centimetres of snow. The city normally gets more like 14.5 cm in February.

But Kulak saysif statistical normshold true,relief is coming soon.

"As we move into the spring, the temperature goes up quite dramatically," he said.

But March could also be colder

The calendar flip from February to March brings an uptick from February's average temperature of 5.4 C to the March average of 1.6 C.

But Environment Canada's senior climatologist Dave Phillips says March is also going to be colder than normal,but it won't be as unbearable as what we've seen so far this winter.

"When that cold comes back after this time, it's usually not as intense and it's short lived," he said."Instead of lasting two weeks it might be three or four days."

Phillips says we've turned a corner, and that the polar vortex that settled into our area has gone back to where it came from.

One of the sharpest changes in average temperatures comes with the next month change-over, from March to April, when the average rises to 4.6 C a 6.2-degree improvement. And from April to May, the average goes upto 9.7 C.

In the meantime, Calgarians could try being philosophical, like Kulak.

"Everybody's bad weather is someone else's good weather, and vice versa," he said.

• MORE CALGARY NEWS|Alberta anglers group calls province's trout recovery plan a 'Band-Aid on a bullet wound'
• MORE CALGARY NEWS|Intersections and irate drivers: How Calgarians are creating their own illegal solutions