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Nova Scotia saw record-breaking heat on October 6, with temperatures soaring well beyond what’s typical for early fall.
Several parts of the province set new daily — and in some cases, all-time October — temperature records.
Environment Canada says much of Nova Scotia climbed into the upper 20s and low 30s, with the largest jumps seen in Greenwood and Halifax. Greenwood reached 30.1°C, surpassing a record that had stood since 1914, while Halifax Stanfield International Airport hit 29.4°C, nearly six degrees above the previous record from 2005.
Meteorologist Ian Hubbard says the warm spell was the result of a strong southwest wind pattern pulling warm air from the U.S. northeast and Great Lakes. “We saw quite a few record temperatures across most of the province — not just for the date, but in some places, new records for the entire month of October,” Hubbard said.
He explained that the combination of clear skies and inland winds created the ideal conditions for the spike. “We had a couple of cooler days leading up to it, then the winds shifted to the southwest,” Hubbard said. “That tends to bring up a lot of heat and humidity from New England, and that air mass pushed right over the Maritimes.”
Coastal areas such as parts of Cape Breton and the South Shore saw slightly lower highs due to onshore winds, but inland areas like Kentville, Kejimkujik, and Truro all broke long-standing records as well.
Hubbard says cooler weather is on the way. “We’re not expecting it to be quite as hot today,” he said. “A system moving through midweek will bring some rain, and as it clears out, winds will shift to the northwest, pulling in cooler air from Quebec and Labrador.”
He also noted that many areas remain unusually dry. “Outside of northern and northwestern Nova Scotia, most regions haven’t seen much precipitation at all to start October,” Hubbard added. “Southern mainland Nova Scotia and Cape Breton have seen little to none so far.”
Below are the new temperature records set across Nova Scotia on October 6, 2025:
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Antigonish (Tracadie): 26.4°C — old record 26.1°C (1916)
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Greenwood: 30.1°C — old record 25.6°C (1914)
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Halifax (Shearwater): 28.5°C — old record 27.8°C (1946)
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Halifax (Stanfield Airport): 29.4°C — old record 24.0°C (2005)
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Kejimkujik National Park: 29.3°C — old record 25.0°C (1974)
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Kentville: 30.3°C — old record 26.1°C (1926)
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Port Hawkesbury: 25.3°C — old record 23.5°C (1985)
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Truro (Debert): 24.7°C — old record 24.4°C (2023)
New records were also set in the Antigonish area and parts of Cape Breton on October 7, 2025:
- Antigonish (Tracadie) 27.8: — old record 24.4 (1940)
- Cheticamp Highlands National Park: 24.6 — old record 23.8 (2005)
- Ingonish Beach RCS: 29.6 — old record 27 (1978)
- Port Hawkesbury: 27.7 — old record 22.2 (1974)
- Sydney: 27.4 — old record 23.9 (1927)
Environment Canada expects temperatures to fall closer to seasonal norms by the end of the week, with daytime highs around the mid-teens.
