The first ten days of February – a true anomaly
Lithuania experienced an unusually cold first ten days of February, marking it as one of the coldest periods since 1961.
The average temperature in Lithuania during the first ten days of February was recorded at -12.9 °C, which represents a significant deviation of 9.8 °C below the norm, making it the third coldest start to February since 1961. The lowest temperature registered was a staggering -34.3 °C on February 2 in Šeduva, marking this as the coldest day of the winter, with the last time a lower temperature was recorded dating back to February 8, 1996, when it hit -35.0 °C in Tauragnai. Other significant weather patterns during this period included several regions experiencing their second instance of frost this winter, with the highest temperature recorded at -0.1 °C in Birštonas on February 7. Precipitation levels were notably low, with an average of only 2 mm across the country, 13% of the climatological norm, indicating a dry spell compared to typical February weather. Interestingly, the sunshine hours during this ten-day period saw an increase, with an average of 45.5 hours of sunshine recorded in Lithuania, which is more than double the usual amount, highlighting a rare divergence from the typical weather pattern. This combination of extreme cold, low precipitation, and increased sunlight could have implications for agricultural productivity and energy consumption in the region as winter continues to unfold.