BOSTON (AP) — At a time when most hardy New Englanders are bundling in layers and chipping ice off their windshields, college students in T-shirts could be seen lounging in the sun on Boston Common.

Saturday brought with it a sudden and disorienting change of seasons with temperatures in Boston reaching 70 degrees.

That not only smashed the record of 62 degrees for the day set nearly 50 years ago, but also marked just the third time that Boston reached 70 degrees in January since record keeping was begun in 1872, according to the National Weather Service.

The record breaking may not be over, with predictions for temperatures as high as 64 degrees for Sunday. That would break the previous record of 61 degrees. Sunday could also turn stormy with showers and a possible thunderstorm.


One of the few hints that Saturday wasn’t a day in May? The 4:32 p.m. sunset.

Boston wasn’t alone.

The Hartford Courant reported that the temperature hit 64 degrees at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks at noon on Saturday, shattering the previous record of 60 degrees.

The temperatures are expected to dip back into the 30s and 40s for much of the week.