Heavy Mid-May Snow Hits Turkey; Slovakia's Record May Cold; It's A Cult; + The Sun Unleashes An X8.7...

...the strongest solar flare of the current cycle.

Heavy Mid-May Snow Hits Turkey

Parts of Turkey have been hit by rare May snow, including the western province of Kocaeli as well as the Black Sea Region.

The week commenced with plunging temperatures, and by Tuesday, heavy, blowing snow was clipping the higher elevations.

In the mountains of Bolu province—for example—the snowfall was substantial.

The plateaus of Trabzon city were also turned white:

كابتن_غازي_عبداللطيف on X

On the outskirts of the northeastern city of Ardahan even, blizzard conditions brought traffic to a standstill on May 14:

“Heavy snow storm in Ardahan of Turkey (14.05.2024)” — RUSMIZAREZARR on X

The town of Tosya, Kastamonu province also received a late-season blast:

“14 Mayıs 2024 Tosya Kastamonu Türkiye” — Hermes on X

The snow continued through Wednesday morning, in Kastamonu province among others, conditions that prompted the country's General Department of Meteorology to issue a “yellow” level of weather danger in some six provinces.

As with Russia to the north —which has just endured its coldest first 10-days of May in 145-years of record keeping— Turkey is enduring a historically cold and snowy start to the month, chills that aren't forecast to subside until at least the weekend.