City of Albuquerque had second-warmest year on record in 2024, according to NWS

If you thought 2024 was a particularly warm year weather-wise, you thought right. Last year was the second-warmest year in more than a century in Albuquerque and New Mexico.

And while January is expected to be wet and cool, the above-average temperatures and dry conditions are expected to resume next month and into spring.

Residents of Albuquerque and New Mexico in 2024 experienced the second-warmest year on record since the 1890s, according to the National Weather Service of Albuquerque.

Across New Mexico last year, the average temperature was 56.3 degrees — 3.4 degrees above normal. The record was set in 2017 at 56.4 degrees, NWS meteorologist Matthew DeMaria said.

“Three degrees above is pretty significant,” he said.

And in Albuquerque, the average temperature was 59.1 degrees. That’s a degree less than the 2017 record of 60.1 degrees. In October 2024, the average jumped 7.34 degrees above normal to 58.4 degrees, DeMaria said.

“If you look at the trends over the last 20, 30 years, it’s very clear we’re in a new normal,” he said about the above-average highs.

The city was also drier than usual in 2024. It received 6.96 inches of precipitation in 2024, which is 1.88 inches lower than normal, he said.

While this month is expected to be wet and cool, people in the metro area could experience above-average temps and dry conditions in February and into spring.

As of Saturday, the city received .03 inches of precipitation in January, but the metro area could see above-average precipitation for the month.

“The short-term outlook doesn’t look too bad,” DeMaria said. “In the next 6-10 days, we can expect to see cooler than normal temperatures and above average precipitation.”

Despite the prediction, parts of the area are abnormally dry or in a moderate drought, DeMaria said, which should worsen as February and spring are slated to be dry.

The snow pack in the mountains is very poor, which will likely lead to a below normal runoff, he said.

“It’s not a great outlook,” he said.