People across the country will experience the effects of a strong arctic cold front early next week. Residents in the central, southern, and eastern United States will experience the worst of the front, with meteorologists expecting that many daily cold records for this time of year will be broken.
Spanning many climate zones, the United States can experience both extreme hot and cold temperatures. And while the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting a relatively warmer, wetter winter overall this year, certain areas of the country will undoubtedly have lower temperatures than others.
Of course, states like Alaska, home to the lowest temperature ever recorded in the United States – 80 degrees below zero just north of Fairbanks in 1971 – are generally colder than states like Arizona and Florida. Yet temperatures vary drastically within states, even the warmer ones.
24/7 Wall St. has determined the coldest town in each state by identifying those places with the lowest average annual temperatures, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Many of the coldest towns are found in more rural areas. Urban areas are filled with concrete and asphalt, which absorb thermal and solar energy at much higher rates than natural landscapes and therefore often have higher temperatures than rural areas. Other factors, like the concentration of industry and automobiles, also help explain why temperatures tend to be higher in cities.
One town may also be colder than another due to several geographic features, including elevation, proximity to bodies of water, and distance from the equator.
Click here to see the coldest town in every state.
Click here to see our methodology.
Source: formulanone / Flickr
1. Alabama
> Coldest town: Hamilton
> Avg. low temp.: 45.8° F
> Avg. low temp. during coldest month: 26.2° F (January)
> Avg. no. of days that reach 32° F or below: 94
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