New York State Mesonet Tracks Dangerous Winter Storm Hitting U.S.
By Mike Nolan
ALBANY, N.Y. (Jan. 26, 2026) — As a major winter storm brings dangerously low temperatures and heavy snow across the United States, the New York State Mesonet at the University at Albany is monitoring conditions to help keep people safe. While the major snowfall is behind us, frigid temperatures are expected to last through the week, with the potential for another snow event on the weekend.
On Saturday, several Mesonet site temperature records were broken. The Lake Placid site recorded a low of -22.1 F, while Belleville dropped to -29 F, both setting new station records. The coldest actual temperature recorded statewide was -37.6 F in Philadelphia, N.Y.
Wind chills were even more extreme, with new site records set in Copenhagen (-49 F), Belleville (-46.6 F) and Lake Placid (-38 F). Every Mesonet station across the state experienced sub-zero wind chills.
On Sunday, several Mesonet sites experienced snowfall rates exceeding three inches per hour, including Brockport, Medina, North Branch, Brookfield and Stephentown. North Branch and Brookfield each set new site records for one-hour snowfall totals.
The highest 24-hour snowfall totals from the storm were recorded in Tannersville (15.7 inches), High Falls (13.1 inches), Somers (12.9 inches) and Warwick (12.9 inches). More than 20 NYS Mesonet sites recorded over 10 inches of snow.
“Having timely and reliable weather information is essential during extreme events, especially for emergency managers and public safety officials,” said Chris Thorncroft, director of UAlbany’s Atmospheric Sciences Research Center and executive director of the NYS Mesonet. “The Mesonet network was created more than a decade ago to meet that need, providing high-quality weather observation data that is updated every five minutes and freely available online to help New Yorkers make informed decisions.”
UAlbany designed, installed and continues to operate the NYS Mesonet. Each of its standard 127 weather stations, spaced an average of about 17 miles apart across the state, are equipped with automated sensors that measure various weather data points in real time and also offer camera images.
In addition, several specialized sub-networks have been deployed, including a Profiler Network of 17 sites that collect vertical atmospheric data up to six miles above ground, a Flux Network of 18 stations that monitor surface energy, and a Snow Network of 20 sites that measure the water content of snow. Monitoring sites along the New York State Thruway also support winter operations and roadway safety.
The first NYS Mesonet site, located in Schuylerville in Saratoga County, celebrated its 10th anniversary last summer. Since then, the network has continuously recorded real-time weather data across the state.