Phoenix ringing in new year with week of unseasonably warm temperatures

PHOENIX — Temperatures are expected to remain unseasonably warm throughout the week as the Valley turns the page on 2024.

The seven-day metro Phoenix forecast calls for highs in the low to middle 70s, including some of the warmest New Year’s Day weather in years.

The overnight lows will be in the middle 40s, which is about average for this time of year, but daytime temperatures are expected to be about 5-7 degrees higher than normal.

Conditions should be ideal for fans at the VRBO Fiesta Bowl in Glendale on New Year’s Eve. The temperature will be in the upper 60s for the 5:30 p.m. kickoff and slowly drop throughout the College Football Playoff game between Penn State and Boise State.

Anybody planning to celebrate outdoors on Tuesday night should anticipate thermometer readings in the low 50s when the clock strikes midnight.

And then, Wednesday has a chance to be Phoenix’s warmest Jan. 1 since it hit a record-tying 81 degrees in 2012. In fact, Phoenix hasn’t even reached 70 degrees on New Year’s Day since 2018.

Unseasonably warm daytime conditions are likely to linger beyond this week, too.

“We’re looking at a pretty strong signal of above-normal temperatures for the foreseeable future,” Ted Whittock, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service (NWS), told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Monday morning.

Is there any rain in the Phoenix forecast?

Whittock also said Phoenix will probably head into 2025 with its monthslong dry streak intact.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, which the NWS uses for the city’s official readings, hasn’t received measurable rainfall since Aug. 22.

“Things are not looking favorable, but we’ll see if things shape up later in the month,” Whittock said, referring to January.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s John Roller contributed to this report.

Follow @kstonezone