The Peter Sinks are limestone sink holes located in the Bear River Range east of Logan. There's not much too them. They are just shallow depressions at high (~8000 ft) elevation.
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| Photo: John Horel |
They are
famous for their incredibly low minimum temperatures and strong cold pools. T
he lowest temperature ever recorded in Utah (and second lowest ever recorded in the contiguous US), -69.3F, was measured in the Peter Sinks on 1 Feb 1985.
Last night, it got down to -31ºF in Peter Sinks. Yeah, that's not that cold compared to the all time record, but it is 46ºF colder than the minimum temperature observed on the rim of the sink less than a mile and 300 vertical feet away!
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| Minimum temperatures since midnight MST 4 December 2012 |
Check out the difference in the temperature trace at the two stations. Temperatures remain relatively steady overnight on the rim, fluctuating between about 15 and 25ºF, whereas on the floor of the sink, they drop like a rock shortly after sunrise and hover near -30ºF most of the night. Note the change in scale between the two graphs.
Indeed, it pays to know where to pitch your tent on a clear calm night in the Bear River Range.
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