Extreme Cold Dominates Asia With Temps 40-50°F Below Normal, ‘Pole of Cold’ Running Above Normal!

Written by on December 17, 2012 in Asia, Rest of Europe with 0 Comments

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Often when there’s unusual warmth in one part of the world, there is colder than normal in another. There’s no deneying the warmth over the US Lower 48 and to a lesser degree over the British Isles and Western Europe. For Western Europe, we have seen a turnaround following a cold first half of December. A mild start for eastern Europe is now catching up with much colder weather. The real cold with greatest departures from normal is focused across a vast area of Asia. Central Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and large parts of China are currently registering daily highs and lows some 20 nearly 50F below normal with overnight lows diving into the -45 to -55F range.

While it is normally cold in the landlocked heart of Asia, the cold here is becoming exceptional. These vast arctic high’s which expand from the source region of Siberia grow colder as there is no outside weather system large enough to disrupt to increasing cold down at the surface. Major cold inversions which develop within long river valleys beneath crystal clear skies and no wind, see daytime temperatures grow colder and nights colder still.

The extreme cold centered over Russia and Kazakhstan is bleeding west as the high builds. The Russian capital of Moscow, home to 10 million people started the month mild with the first 10 days averaging above normal but the last 4 days has seen a sharp drop in temperature and now the Russian capital is locked in the freezer. Days and nights running 5-15F below normal has now put December a degree below normal and this deviation to below normal will grow over the next 7 days.

Source: Visityakutia.com

Both Saturday and Sunday saw highs fail to hit 10F or -12C with the past two nights dropping below 0F or -18C for the first time this season. Moscow is back at 0F as of 8pm local time after another day which has failed to hit 10F. While below normal, it’s not unusual for this city at this time of year. Moscow is likely to grow colder still through this week and towards Christmas as milder air increases over the western half of the continent.

While Moscow may have a hard time hitting 0F by midweek with overnight lows pushing -10F, this is nothing compared to the -20 to -40F readings just east and colder still over the heart of Russia.

I have been closely monitoring temperatures in the last few days over Kazakhstan (south of Russia). A landlocked country, far away from modifying influences of the ocean, it can get pretty cold here and in recent weeks, it’s become dangerously cold.

To put it in perspective. In December, the Kazakhstan capital of Astana averages a high of 17F or -8C, with an average low of 3F or -16C. Recent days has seen ‘highs’ in the -30s F and when I checked the city’s temperature at 9am this morning, it was a bonechilling -46F or -43C. That’s a remarkable 49 below normal F. Temperatures in the northeast of the country were down at around -50F in the northeast with many northern communities failing to warm above -40F by day.

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Courtesy/Owned by Weatherbell Models

Courtesy/Owned by Weatherbell Models

Further east and Mongolia, another typically cold, landlocked country has likewise been brutal and much colder than normal. The capital, Ulan Bator, located in the north-central part of the country at an elevation of 4,300ft within the Tuul River Valley has been frigid but in just the past 36 hours has become even colder than recent days. So far this month, Ulan Bator has been averaging 6F below normal. Recent days has seen ‘highs’ near 0F or -18C but earlier in the month they were as as -7F or -22C with lows down to -22F or -30C. Think these numbers are cold, the current temperature as of 11pm local time in Ulan Bator is now -30F or -34C, Parts northern Mongolia near to the Russian border has seen temperatures drop into the -40F/C range.

China, like Kazakhstan and Mongolia has been extremely cold. The far north is usually cold, but here too, it has been far colder than normal with lows by night plunging to between -20 and -35F. The northern city of ABAG QI/XIN HOT has seen daytime ‘highs’ as cold as -12F with one night dipping to -25F.

Roughly 1,000 miles to the north of the Russian-China border, tucked deep within frozen Siberian river valleys, daytime highs have been in the -30F range while each night now, lows drop below -55 to -60F.

Courtesy/Owned by Weatherbell Models

Courtesy/Owned by Weatherbell Models

Despite -40 to -55F over North-Central Asia, The ‘Pole of Cold’ Is Warmer Than Normal

So far, the core of coldest air compared to normal has been centred to the west of the traditional ‘coldest part of the northern world’, that is of course the Oymyakon region tucked away in the northeast corner of Asia.

Located along the Indigirka River, 19 miles from Tomtor, Oymyakon is considered the coldest inhabited place on earth. So far this month, highs have been as cold as -58F and as low as -66F yet the village is still averaging 2.5F above normal. The average high is -50F, average low -56F and you can knock another few degrees off that for the average next month. In December it has gotten down to -81F or -62C here with the coldest ever recorded, -96F or -71C.

The much larger Siberian city of Yakutsk is considered the coldest ‘city’ on earth and it, like Pymyakon is averaging above normal for the month so far. High’s have been as cold as -33F at the start of the month while lows have been down at -44F but milder temperatures as ‘warm’ as -9F and lows of -19F has help the city see +5.4F for the month so far.

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