Wichita broke a 48-year-old record high before temps dropped. Here’s what to expect next
Wichita broke a decades-old record high on Tuesday amid a warm streak this month.
Tuesday’s high was 80 degrees, which surpasses the previous record high of 78 set in 1976, the National Weather Service in Wichita said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Average temps for this time of year sit in the 50s with lows in the 30s, according to a Wichita meteorologist.
“We were well above normal [on Tuesday],” NWS Wichita meteorologist Andy Kleinsasser said. “We were pushing about 30 degrees above average yesterday.”
Those warm temperatures plummeted to a low of 12 degrees Wednesday morning, with the rest of the of the day forecast at a sunny high of 44, a detailed forecast shows.
“Like everything with weather, you kind of get ups and downs, high and lows,” Kleinsasser said. “We just had a strong cold front approach us from the north yesterday.”
The 64-degree change in temperature from Tuesday into Wednesday was tied for the fourth greatest temperature difference between one day and the next in the Wichita NWS’ recorded history, Kleinsasser said.
Weather records date back to July 1, 1888.
Looking ahead, temperatures are expected to warm back up into the weekend. Another major drop in temperature is not expected at this time, Kleinsasser said.
Thursday is forecast at a high of 53; Friday at 61 with Saturday and Sunday in the high 70s, a NWS detailed forecast shows.
Sunday poses another chance for a record high, with a forecast high of 80. Previous records for the same day were set in 1910 and 1994 at 80 degrees, according to Kleinsasser.
“We could be flirting with a record there on Sunday, the third.”
This story was originally published February 28, 2024 at 2:57 PM.