Syracuse experienced unusually warm temperatures on Tuesday that haven’t been matched since the beginning of Word War II.

Temperatures reached 70 degrees, surpassing the previous high of 68 degrees set in 1941, according to the National Weather Service.

Warm autumn temperatures in the South making their way up north caused the unusual weather, said Tom Hauf, a local meteorologist. But Tuesday’s warm weather will not persist and Hauf said he expects it will cool down in the next few days, and then warm up again this weekend.

“By tomorrow afternoon, it’ll be snowing,” he said with a laugh.

Although Wednesday’s high will only be about 40 degrees, the upcoming warm weather doesn’t bode well for local ski resorts that already faced a poor snow season last winter, Hauf said.

Two winters ago, Syracuse experienced the coldest winter since 1902, when temperatures were first recorded, and last winter was the warmest winter on record, according to Hauf’s website. Hauf said on his website that he expects this year’s winter to be somewhere in between.

This winter’s temperatures will be milder than normal, but there will be strong fluctuations in warm and cold weather, with the coldest temperatures coming in December and the warmest in January, according to Hauf’s website.

Though the warm weather came as Syracuse University students were gearing up for final exams, many still took the time to enjoy the day.

Kit Taylor, a freshman illustration and animation major, opted to spend some time studying outside.

“I just feel stupid for bringing this coat,” she said with a laugh, gesturing toward her heavy, black winter coat with a fur hood. “I was expecting a lot worse winter.”

Rosalind Cardone, a Buffalo native, was also expecting the weather to be much colder. The weather has been this warm in January and February in the past, but never in December, said Cardone, a freshman advertising major.

When she realized how warm it was outside, Cardone said she had originally wanted to wear shorts, but decided against it because she had already brought most of her shorts home and didn’t think it would be “socially acceptable.” Nonetheless, Cardone said she was enjoying the warm temperatures.

But in the basement of E.S. Bird Library, Dan Johnson wasn’t as happy with the unusual weather. Surrounded by a growing number of tissues, Johnson was feeling the effects of the fluctuating temperatures.

“I get sick when the temperature spikes,” said Johnson, a senior television, radio and film major. “I like the warm weather; I just wish it would stay consistent.”

In the four years he has spent at SU, Johnson said these are the warmest December temperatures he can remember.

“I have this idea of how each season’s supposed to be,” he said. “I just wish the weather would stick to it.”

Published on December 5, 2012 at 1:45 am

Contact Jessica: jliannet@syr.edu | @JessicaIannetta