The past winter was the coldest in Latvia since the winter of 2010-2011, reports the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Centre.
Although December 2025 was 3.2 degrees warmer than normal, the average air temperature in January and February of this year was below normal by 5.7 and 5.2 degrees respectively, and overall, winter was 2.6 degrees colder than the average for 1991-2020.
The average temperature for the calendar winter was -5 degrees, which is the lowest since the winter of 2010-2011, when the average three-month temperature was -6.2 degrees.
The average precipitation for the winter was 76.6 millimeters, or 53% of the norm.
In December, 57 heat records were broken, another six maximum temperature records were set on the last day of February, and 19 new cold records were established in early and mid-February. In comparison, only 16 cold records were set in total in 2024 and 2025 combined.
On the morning of February 17, the maximum frost of -32.5 degrees was recorded at the Daugavpils observation station, while on the morning of January 31, it was -32.8 degrees, whereas on December 10 in Riga, the thermometer rose to +9.9 degrees, and on February 28 in Jekabpils to +10.9 degrees.
December became the fifth warmest in Latvia since 1924. January was the 15th coldest in history and the coldest since 2010, while February was the 17th coldest in history and the coldest since 2012.
The average temperature in Latvia in the last month of winter was -8.3 degrees. The average precipitation in February was 16 millimeters, or 40% of the norm. The most precipitation last month fell in Piedruja - 38 millimeters, while the least was in Stende, where 6 millimeters fell.
The thinnest snow cover was on the coast of the Gulf of Riga, while the thickest was in Latgale. The maximum snow cover reached 62 centimeters on February 14 in Dagda - this is the thickest snow cover in the country since April 2013.
