Record Snows Hit Siberia & Far East; ECMWF Forecasts Cold Winter For Europe; Half Of China Registers Record Low Temps, Snow Records Broken; NH Snow Cover Steps Up; + Greenland's 20-Year Cooling Trend

The COLD TIMES...

Record Snows Hit Siberia & Far East

A powerful winter system is unleashing chaos across Siberia and the Russian Far East, delivering record snow, hurricane-force winds, and paralyzing blizzards across multiple regions.

Storm warnings have been in effect for the Taimyr Dolgano-Nenets Municipal Region, the Turukhansk District, and the Evenki Municipal Region. Whiteout conditions and fierce northwest winds topping 80 mph have swept these parts.

The Amur Region is another buried under unprecedented snowfall. From Nov 25 - 27, three times the normal monthly snow has accumulated here, and records are falling. Blagoveshchensk, for example, has busted its benchmark set in 1940. While in Tiksi, blizzard conditions have raged for four consecutive days now, and are expected to persist until Nov 29.

The cyclone responsible will pass by the weekend, to be replaced by clearer skies and temperatures of -20C (-4F), and beyond.

This is proving a brutal start to winter.

ECMWF Forecasts Cold Winter For Europe

Latest forecasts from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) point to this being a colder and snowier winter than usual for the majority of Europe.

Temperatures are expected to hold below average for long periods of time, raising heating demand and straining Europe’s already precarious gas supplies, leading to yet higher energy prices.

Gas storage, currently at 88%, is being depleted faster than usual owing to November's fierce cold snap — at this rate reserves will do well to make it through winter. The war in Ukraine, uncertainty over the Russian gas transit, and falling production in the U.S. (recently a key exporter) further cloud Europe’s energy outlook, with risks of halted supplies and brownouts looming.

This week, Paris received its heaviest November snow since 1969.