ORLANDO, Fla. – It will be feeling festive for the holidays!
Arctic air is set to blast into Central Florida on Friday. The core of the bitterly cold air mass will settle into the region by Christmas morning.
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After a start in the 20s and 30s Christmas Eve morning, temperatures struggle to climb out of the 50s. The sunshine Christmas Eve will be extremely deceptive.
The last time Orlando failed to reach the 50s for an afternoon high temperature was January 2014.
If it is 48 or colder at the Orlando International Airport on Saturday afternoon, it will be the coldest afternoon since January 2010.
Christmas morning will also start in the 20s and 30s. Clouds will gradually increase through the afternoon, preventing much warming.
Highs on Christmas Day are expected to only reach the mid- to upper 40s. That would put the Orlando area in the ballpark for top two coldest Christmases on record, potentially taking the second spot.
The coldest Christmas on record for Orlando is 36 degrees, set in 1983. That record appears to be safe.
While no city in Central Florida will come close to observing their coldest on record, every city will be flirting for the second spot.
The Christmas of 2020, you may remember, only reached a high of 53 degrees at the Orlando International Airport. That was good for a tie for the 6th coldest Christmas on record.
Stay warm!