Mother Nature has definitely packed a punch heading into winter, dousing Moose Jaw with lots of snow, and bone-chilling temperatures.  

It’s safe to say that winter is officially here in Moose Jaw, or at least it feels that way through the first 15 days of November.  

She hasn’t let up with the cold temperatures since about the beginning of the month and halfway through has led the city to be below average. 

“The average so far has been –8.4 degrees and for the month the average temperature for November is –4.3 degrees,” says Environment Canada Meteorologist, Terri Lang. “If we look in terms of average highs and lows. So far, this month the average high has been –4 and for the month of November, the average high is +0.7 degrees. The average overnight low has been –12.8 so far and the average low for the month is –9.4.” 

The max temperature in 10 of the first 15 days have all been below zero.  

Lang adds that the unwelcoming temperatures are the result of the earth's jet stream hovering over western Canada.  

“The jet stream plunged south earlier on in the month, right after Halloween happened. The jet stream is a delineator between the cold air to the north and the warm air to the south. When that happens the big ridge of high-pressure that forms an upside U over western Canada collapsed, so now we have a right-side U over western Canada.” 

This collapse in the jet stream has caused the cold temperatures to plummet not just in Moose Jaw, but as far south as the southern United States. Lang explains that the jet stream is expected to break down next week and bring milder temperatures to the region.  

Besides freezing temperatures, Mother Nature has brought a fair share of snow to the Moose Jaw area. In Moose Jaw, snow is not calculated specifically but Lang was able to provide the amount of total precipitation of both rain and snow for the month of November so far.  

“The total precipitation was 9.8 millimetres and the average for November for total precipitation is 17.3 millimetres. That is rain and snow that has melted down. The average snowfall is 17.7 centimetres and the average snow on the ground for November is 3 cm.” 

As of Tuesday, according to Moose Jaw’s sensor, 4 cm of snow is currently covering the ground. She did say that this data could be skewed due to the Saskatchewan weather conditions interfering with the ground sensors.  

Heading into the rest of this week and into next, the cold weather will continue but milder weather will hit Moose Jaw near the end of November.