Lowest outside air temp you've observed?

[Quattro Pete]

Seen -65C reported on a recent transatlantic flight. That was probably the lowest temp I've ever seen.

Can it get much lower than this on a commercial airliner? Granted, it's altitude dependent... Most commercial jets don't typically fly much higher than this.

 

[eljefino]

Aren't you separated from that reading a bit much to make it noteworthy? I could spy Mars in the sky and decide it's colder.

To answer the question: At ground level, -22.9'F, and I could open the door and witness it personally.

 

[zzd]

Higher altitude flight, sure, very low temps. -70F not uncommon. -40F common all the time.

But on the ground, for me, -65F.

And in 1977, I had a diesel Rabbit, which I managed to get going in -38F conditions. It was in upstate NY. The battery went inside over night.

I tried to use a propane torch to preheat the oil, but propane doesn't vaporize well at those temps. So a small camp stove was put under the oil pan. 30 minutes of heating with that, and a "double glow" with the glow plugs and the engine started up.

In those days, the best defense against fuel waxing was to run #1 (kerosine), which on that day I had a 50/50 mix of in the fuel tank. We tended to leave the fuel tanks about 1/2 full, so that we could pour warm fuel, kept inside overnight, to de-cloud the existing fuel if needed.

Starting in -20F was not too much of a problem, but -38F was a challenge. Also that was back when the lightest oil used was commonly a 10W-xx.

I have friends in Canada who experience -30F and -40F temps in the winter and own VW TDI diesels, and they have comparatively few challenges starting them. The engines are in general easier to start, and reformulation of diesel fuel has reduced the fuel waxing / clouding problems.

 

[spackard]

OP: Well, you wouldn't want to stowaway in the wheel well. If the temp doesn't get you the windchill will.

 

[DNVDMAX]

-47F in Fairbanks, AK.

 

[Wolf359]

I think you have to adjust for the altitude, it's about 3-3.5 degrees per 1000 feet of elevation so it's not really that cold on the ground. Lowest I've ever seen in my car has been -2 degrees, I was surprised to see the negative sign.

 

[Click]

-56 actual air temp in registered weather station box in Brainerd MN (Altitude 1200) in Jan. of 1972. We had to cover the tomatoes and roses that night

 

[BigCahuna]

I was upstate New York about 30 years ago, when the temp went to -30f overnight. That van would only tick at that temp. It had to warm up to 0f for the van to start.5 minutes was the most I could stand at -30 the way I was dressed.,,

 

[Chris142]

About 10f

 

[DragRace]

-20 degrees F

 

[Quattro Pete]

Maybe I wasn't clear, but I was asking about temp you've seen reported while in the air. I posted this in the aviation section for a reason.

 

[CHARLIEBRONSON21]

But also the motorcycles and boating section too...

 

[bullwinkle]

January 18, 1977-it was -25F in Cincinnati, I was 12 years old, walked 3 blocks to the school bus stop & waited OUTSIDE for the bus! Brrrr!

 

[Astro14]

Originally Posted By: spackard
OP: Well, you wouldn't want to stowaway in the wheel well. If the temp doesn't get you the windchill will.


Not to mention the difficulty of breathing at 36,000 feet. (Hint: you can't )

 

[Astro14]

Winnipeg: -46 F OAT. That's actual temp, not windchill. Couldn't determine the windchill that day, the charts only went to - 65 F. Yeah, I walked to school....but it was only a block away...and I was dressed like the kid in "A Christmas Story".

 

[Pablo]

In the air, around -80°F.

Terra firma, snow camp: -2°F and we were camping in it as a Boy Scout. I've grown soft I tell you!

 

[zzd]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Maybe I wasn't clear, but I was asking about temp you've seen reported while in the air. I posted this in the aviation section for a reason.

In that case, -70 to -80F was frequent at higher temps on arctic operations. I never tracked the temps much. I do know that we installed plates over the oil coolers on the engines.

My buddies who flew U-2s saw -80F routinely. Ha ha.

Actually, most aircraft simply had Celsius scales, and I can remember seeing -60C frequently, and I don't remember -70C. It wasn't usually a number I was concerned about much.

 

[chad8]

The coldest temperature ever recorded in the city of Detroit is -21 degrees, which occurred on January 21, 1984. I went ice fishing that day. The wind chill on Anchor bay was -56 .
I think it was -36 on the lake. Beer froze on the way out. Fish we caught froze instantly.
Young and stupid....

 

[gfh77665]

Maybe 30? I think it froze here once...I dunno.

 

[JerryBob]

My sister went to college in Gunnison, Colorado, which is known for being the coldest spot in the lower 48. The actual air temp would routinely be -40F in the morning.