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Published on January 21, 2025
Austin's Weather Extremes: From Record-Breaking Heat to Historic Cold SnapsSource: City of Austin

In Austin, Texas, the weather has proven to be as varied as the city's music scene. A record-watching article by KXAN recently highlighted the extreme temperatures that have scorched and frozen this central Texas town. According to their findings, Austin has touched a scorching high of 112 degrees on August 28, 2011, and again on September 5, 2000. If that's not enough to make you perspire, the city has witnessed the mercury hit 110 degrees on six additional days, with the last occurrence on August 17, 2023. It seems nowhere is safe from the rising tide of high temperatures, a sobering fact for a world already deeply vested in conversations around climate change.

In contrast to the high heat, Austin has experienced some serious cold snaps over the years. The most bone-chilling days on record include January 31, 1949, when the temperature dropped to a low of -2 degrees, and February 12, 1899, when a cold front nudged thermometers to -1 degree. These events are not merely historical footnotes but markers of extremes in a region more synonymous with heat than ice. As reported by Yahoo News, 2011 holds the infamous title for the most 100-degree days in a single year, reaching that sweltering benchmark a record 90 times. And the summer of 2023 broke previous records with 45 consecutive days of triple-digit temperatures – a stretch that made history and likely exacerbated already acutely felt impacts of climate change.

The city has also seen its fair share of rapid weather reversals. Nothing highlights this more than the largest 24-hour temperature drop recorded, a staggering 55-degree plummet from 86 degrees to 31 degrees between February 22 and 23, 2022. These dramatic fluctuations add another layer of unpredictability to the already challenging task of weather forecasting. In the winter, for instance, Austin's coldest month on average predates the modern supermarket – January 1930 – with an average temperature of a brisk 39.3 degrees.

Comparing these weather extremes underscores a climate of contrasts. Despite Austin's more than 2,300 days of recorded freezes, it's the increasing number of triple-digit heat days that are capturing attention and concern. Per KXAN's data, since 2010, Austin has seen roughly 650 days of sweltering triple-digit heat, which are rapidly catching up to the number of freeze days, which stand around 200 in the same period. This trend speaks not just to an evolving climate narrative in central Texas but to a larger global dialogue on weather patterns and their long-term effects on our lived environments. For residents and weather watchers alike, Austin's historic weather patterns provide both an archive of the past and a potential blueprint for what lies ahead.

Austin-Weather & Environment