Temperature difference between Toronto and Ottawa

[Ottawa Blizzard]

I was browsing through Environment Canada's climate data and noticed an incredible difference in temperature between Toronto and Ottawa/Montreal at the end of January 1993. I realize that it is not all that unusual to see Ottawa much colder than Toronto in the winter but this seems to take things to a whole new level. Take a look:

Toronto: http://www.climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca/climateData/dailydata_e.html?timeframe=2&Prov=XX&StationID=5097&Year=1993&Month=1&Day=26

Ottawa: http://www.climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca/climateData/dailydata_e.html?timeframe=2&Prov=XX&StationID=4337&Year=1993&Month=1&Day=1

Pretty incredible! I mean the high in Toronto on January 31,1993 was 4 celcius with some light rain showers, while Ottawa on that same day had a high of -14 celcius with 8" of snow!! What kind of weather pattern set up that incredible extreme? Was it simply that Ottawa was under the influence of a northeasterly wind?

[snowstormcanuck]

Ugh, I hate all that missing data in EC's database during 1992 and 1993. Don't know what's going on there.

[Organizing Low]

i remember that event.

ottawa was under the influence of a retreating polar vortex and a huge warmup over most of the continent.

a clipper which signalled the warm air in the prairies intitally which spread all across the continent, dove SE across central ontario and south of ottawa...... and thus the warm front never crossed ottawa.

toronto was obviously on the other side of the warm front.

defintely an unusual event, not sure what the indices were at the time.

[donsutherland1]

defintely an unusual event, not sure what the indices were at the time.

AO: +2.696

NAO: +1.137

PNA: +2.165

GWO: Phase 6

[Ottawa Blizzard]

i remember that event.

ottawa was under the influence of a retreating polar vortex and a huge warmup over most of the continent.

a clipper which signalled the warm air in the prairies intitally which spread all across the continent, dove SE across central ontario and south of ottawa...... and thus the warm front never crossed ottawa.

toronto was obviously on the other side of the warm front.

defintely an unusual event, not sure what the indices were at the time.

Pretty amazing stuff. I wonder if we could get something like that to happen this year?

[Ottawa Blizzard]

Ugh, I hate all that missing data in EC's database during 1992 and 1993. Don't know what's going on there.

No kidding, especially given those are two very interesting years weatherwise