By 9 o'clock this morning, it'll have been 60 hours since Bismarck was last on the good side of zero. The temperature has had a minus sign in front of it since Monday night.

Lows hit 18 below on Tuesday morning and 15 below Wednesday. They were expected to bottom out at minus 13 this morning before climbing back toward the realm of positive integers. It could hit 16 degrees in Bismarck today, according to the local National Weather Service office.

The normal high for this time of year here is 23 degrees. A warm front should move into the state today from the southwest, pushing temperatures up to that more normal level, the weather service said. By Friday, the high could be in the mid-20s. After this morning, there are no minus signs in the forecast through Wednesday, though the low tonight and through the weekend will be close to zero.

While it was cold in Bismarck, it was worse in the northern part of the state. Temperatures dropped to 39 below at a North Dakota Agriculture Weather Network site 14 miles west of Bottineau. In the city of Bottineau, it was 32 below on Wednesday morning. It hit minus 31 at Minot Air Force Base, and was minus 51 there with the wind chill.

But again the good news is that it looks like it's going to warm up a bit. Highs on the weekend and into next week range from the upper teens to the mid-20s, with lows in the single digits.