Photo: A high angle view of downtown Vancouver, the Lions Gate Bridge as the sun comes up / Shutterstock
Brrr!
The Metro Vancouver weather forecast calls for decidedly chilly temperatures tonight after temperatures for Oct. 9 were recorded at their lowest in over 80 years.
Vancouver Is Awesome spoke to Armel Castellan, Meteorologist, Environment Canada, who explained why the temperatures dipped so low, as well as what we can expect in the days to come.
Castellan notes that Oct. 9 and Oct. 12 are the only October days in the history of the YVR records that have never dipped below zero degrees. With that being said, it is uncommon for them to dip below zero degrees during October.
In fact, Castellan explains that there have only been two occasions that temperatures have dipped below zero since 2000. He says that the last two days in October 2006 saw temperatures dip to a chilly -2.6°C and -2.8°C. After that, the lowest October temperature was recorded on Oct. 11, 2016 at zero degrees.
"Vancouver saw temperatures reach a low of 1.4°C this morning," reports Castellan. "However, the hourly low was 1.8°C."
Castellan adds that temperatures are expected to dip down to zero degrees tonight, but that they could be even lower. Regardless, he says that these temperatures are considerably low for this time of year. The average temperatures for this time of year are 14°C during the day and 7°C overnight. As such, they are roughly 6°C colder.
As a matter of fact, Vancouver hasn't seen an Oct. 9 this cold since 1935 - a whopping 84 years ago. Back then, temperatures dipped to 1.1°C. Prior to that, temperatures dipped to zero degrees in 1916.
"We've had some very clear skies, and, as a result, the temperatures dip quite low," he remarks. "That's why we expect temperatures will fall quite low tonight. However, Friday night is expected to be cloudy, so the temperatures will reflect that."
Despite the brisk weather, Castellan says that the overall temperatures for fall will likely hit just above average.
Metro Vancouver Weather Forecast
Photo: Environment Canada
If you felt like fall came unseasonably early in the Lower Mainland, you aren’t alone.
Not only have there been many dreary, rainy days, but there have also been a number of downpours. Vancouverites witnessed an intense downpour around 4 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 9 that caused flash flooding in parts of the city. As a matter of fact, Vancouver received over twice the average rainfall for September.
