It was as cold as it’s ever been on this date in Pittsburgh Friday morning.
Temperatures sank to minus 6 degrees around 7:50 a.m. at the National Weather Service’s offices in Moon, according to meteorologist Jason Frazier.
That slightly edges out today’s previous record low of minus 5, set in 2019. Before that, the record stood at minus 1, set in 1934.
The frigid air comes after a record-high snowfall on Sunday, which has been followed by temperatures lingering in the teens and single digits.
Frazier said an Arctic air mass has been present in the region for several days, but cloud coverage has kept temperatures mostly out of the negatives.
Clear skies have enabled the record-breaking lows, he said.
Predicted lows of up to minus 11 early Saturday morning seem poised to shatter the Jan. 31 record of minus 5.
Though Frazier said the record was still likely to be broken, temperatures will still depend on the amount of cloud coverage that forms early Saturday.
“There is some variability overnight,” Frazier said.
Clear skies may mean colder weather, but it also means there’s little chance for more snow.
The Pittsburgh region will avoid what’s set to be an intense winter storm further south that’s likely to drop several more inches of snow onto a zone mainly centered in the Carolinas.
Frazier said the most residents can expect is some flurries this weekend.
Temperatures are set to rise slightly into the 20s next week, but Frazier said there’s still no mass thaw in sight.
February is set to remain mostly below freezing, though sunshine may help better compact the snow, Frazier said.
The National Weather Service has a cold weather advisory in effect from 7 p.m. Friday to 11 a.m. Saturday.