It’s Cold Enough For This Weather Phenomenon In MN Already?

The last two mornings as I've left my house to come to work, I've started to notice a strange phenomenon in the night sky. It appears to be faint light beams reaching up towards the stars, like those big spotlights they'd use at a grand opening or movie premiere, but they weren't swaying. I was able to capture a picture of the lights this morning, and it turns out it's part of normal 'extreme' cold Minnesota weather, but it wasn't that cold this morning, so what gives?

The light/weather phenomenon is called light pillars, and according to an online weather source, the pillars are common when temps reach well below zero.

A "light tower" in the meteorological sense, referring to a light pillar, typically forms when temperatures are below zero degrees Fahrenheit; the exact temperature range depends on the specific atmospheric conditions, but generally, it needs to be between -10 and -20 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for optimal light pillar formation.

Temps this morning on the ground were upper single digits, and low double digits, so the upper atmosphere was likely the right temp, but I don't remember seeing this so early in winter before. I feel like I usually see these in late January or early February, but whenever I see them I feel pretty lucky I get to take in the beauty of our four distinct seasons.

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Are you a fan of seeing things like light pillars? What makes Minnesota special to you?