Why Maple Creek is so often Saskatchewan's hotspot

Most of Saskatchewan has been basking in warm, snow-melting temperatures and sunshine this week.But it's hard not to turn green with envy when looking at weather in thesouthwest, particularly Maple Creek.

The community is Saskatchewan's own little California. It often tops the charts for warm temperatures in the province.

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Just this week, Maple Creek broketemperature records for three straight days.It was alsothe warmest city in Canada on Valentine's Day, hitting 18.9 C.

Why so warm?

Although it is uncommon for Maple Creek to see this type of heat wave in February, it often has days above the freezing mark throughout the winter.

So why is it so warm compared toneighbouring communitiessuch as Estevan, which is farther south?

Maple Creek's geography is a major factorin its mild weather. Situated to the northeast of Cypress Hills, it experiences a weather phenomenon called adiabatic heating. This issimilar to what is seen with Calgary's winter chinooks.

Science of chinooks

Most prairie residents have heard of the chinook winds, which can transform southern Alberta into a warm oasis in the dead of winter.

During a chinook, moist, Pacific air is pushed eastward up against the west side of the Rocky Mountains. As the air rises, the pressure drops and the moist air cools.

This happens at a rate of five degrees per 1,000 metres (known as the moist adiabatic lapse rate).As this air cools it loses a lot of its moisture through condensation and precipitation.

Thenow drier air travels down the east side of the mountains towards Calgary. As it descends, the pressure rises and the air is compressed. This causes the air to heat up.

Because dry air warms faster than moist air (at 10 degrees per 1,000 metres), the air on the eastern side of the mountains is much warmer than the air on the west side of the mountains.

A similar phenomenon occurs near Maple Creek, at a smaller scale. When southwest winds are set up in the area, it createsadiabatic heating.

What happens in Maple Creek ...

As the air descends on Cypress Hills, the pressure increases and the air is compressed, warming it up.

Because of Maple Creek's proximity to the Cypress Hills, the warm air settles in the community, bumping its temperatures up in relation to its surroundings.

The farther awayfrom the elevation, the lesser thewarming effect.

This week, Saskatchewan is seeing a large ridge in the upper atmosphere, and above-seasonal air flooding through the prairies.

When you combine this already mild air with this mini "chinook" scenario in the Cypress Hills, the results are summer-like temperatures in Maple Creek in the middle of February.