Monthly Weather Report

Iowa Monthly Weather Summary – January 2025

General Summary

Temperatures averaged 18.8 degrees or 0.7 degree below normal, while precipitation averaged 0.28 inch or 0.69 inch below normal. January 2025 ties 2003 as the 73rd coldest in 153 years of statewide records; it ties 1927 and 1961 as the 9th driest. A colder January occurred in 2022 while a drier one was last recorded in 1986 (5th driest).

Temperatures

Monthly average temperatures were slightly below normal over southern Iowa with near-normal conditions across northern Iowa. January’s statewide average maximum temperature was 29.2 degrees, 1.1 degrees above normal, while the average minimum temperature was 8.5 degrees, 2.4 degrees below normal. Iowa Falls (Hardin County) reported the month’s high temperature of 63 degrees on the 30th, 36 degrees above normal. Emmetsburg (Palo Alto County) and Pocahontas (Pocahontas County) reported the month’s low temperature of -22 degrees on the 22nd, on average 29 degrees below normal.

Heating Degree Day Totals

Home heating requirements, as estimated by heating degree day totals, are 4% more than last January and 2% more than normal. Thus far this heating season, heating degree day totals are 3% more than last year at this time and 10% less than normal.

Precipitation

January is climatologically the driest month of the year for Iowa. Most of the northern one-third of Iowa experienced the driest January in 153 years of statewide records; multiple stations reported no measurable precipitation. Only a pocket of south-central Iowa reported above average precipitation with Bloomfield (Davis County) observing the month’s highest precipitation of 2.04 inches. The statewide average snowfall was 1.7 inches, 6.6 inches below normal. The highest snowfall total was measured at a Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow (CoCoRaHS) network gauge near Cedar Rapids (Linn County).

US Drought Monitor

From the DNR’s Water Summary Update and Iowa Drought Plan - The current US Drought Monitor (USDM) shows similar drought conditions compared to December’s map published in the January Water Summary Update. However, drought conditions improved compared to the end of October. At the end of October, about 37% of Iowa was rated as D1 (Moderate Drought), and 50% was rated as D2 (Severe Drought). By the end of January, the D1 area had increased to 54% while D2 had decreased to less than 1%. An unseasonably dry January, which is already the driest month of the year, explains the continued drought conditions. The most recent USDM, released on February 6, shows a continuation in conditions across portions of the state, with only one pocket of D2 covering about 1% of the state in northwest Iowa.

Justin M. Glisan, Ph.D.
State Climatologist of Iowa
Iowa Dept. of Agriculture & Land Stewardship
Wallace State Office Bldg.
Des Moines, IA 50319
Telephone; (515) 281-8981
E-mail: Justin.Glisan@IowaAgriculture.gov

* Departures are computed from 1991-2020 normals.
The weather data in this report are based upon information collected by the U. S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA National Weather Service.